Joining Together
by Shi no Megami 24
Summary: New mutants have arrived, but they aren't what they seem. They come from other planets. Will these powerful beings help to bring peace on Earth or destroy what's left of it?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own X-Men... unfortunately.

Chapter 1

_It was amazing. I'd never seen anything like it before. So this was Earth. You see, I'm from a different planet, and usually we're not allowed to travel to Earth, but I ran away from home. I was so curious to see what was so amazing about this beautiful planet, but now I know._

Lily wandered around aimlessly, her mind searching the crowd around her. Earth was new to her, and she wanted to learn more about it as quick as possible. It frightened her though to learn about the mutants, and how much people hated them. She was a little confused.

"Mutants? Why do they call them mutants?" Lily shook her head clear of the thought and continued walking. There was no point in worrying about it.

"Hey you, with the black hair."

At first Lily wasn't sure if the person was talking to her or not, but then told herself they couldn't be. Her hair was black with red tips, and there were many people with black hair.

"Are those contacts? I don't know anyone with violet eyes." Or maybe they were talking to her. Lily spun to stare at the person. It was a boy, who looked to be about her age, with brown hair and eyes.

"Who are you? And why are you even talking to me?"

"Name's John. And I was just curious. You looked like a little lost kitty. I just thought I'd help."

Lily knew that wasn't really what he was trying to do, so she searched his mind. "You think I'm a mutant."

"What?" John pretended to act innocent, though he did a poor job of it. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I don't like the term mutant. Why are they called mutants?"

John blinked in confusion. "What are you talking about? Of course they're called mutants. They're different. People are afraid of them." Lily still didn't understand. Where she was from people were different, but no one was called a mutant.

"And you like being called a mutant?"

"See! I knew you were one. You're a damn mind reader, aren't you? I was right."

"I'm not a mutant," Lily calmly told him.

"Sure. Tell that to everyone else." John started laughing. Lily was getting angry, but made a point of not making a scene.

"Stop. I'm telling the truth. I'm not a…"

"John!" John's laughter stopped as a young couple walked up to them. One was a girl. Lily liked the white streak in her hair. The other was a boy with dirty blonde hair and blue eyes.

"Bobby… Rogue." John seemed to glare the two, but Lily wasn't exactly sure, because at the same time he was smiling.

"John, what…"

"It's Pyro to the both of you," John snapped.

"He's not bothering you, is he?" the girl asked.

"Not really. I can take care of myself." Lily tried to walk away.

"Is that the thanks we get?" the boy asked.

"Bobby!" Rogue smiled at Lily. "I'm sorry. We probably just got in the way. I'm Rogue, and this is my boyfriend, Bobby."

"Please to meet you. I'm Lily." The two girls shook hands. "Isn't it hot? I like your gloves though."

"Thanks." Rogue pointed at Lily's arms. "But these gloves are just as bad as your arm warmers." Lily gave a nervous laugh.

"Oops. I forgot about those. They may be warm, but they sure are fashionable." The two girls laughed. Lily really liked Rogue. She seemed like a nice girl.

"You don't want to hang out with these people. They're boring." Lily looked over at John and a flame just barely sparked around her.

"Don't ever tell me what I want to or don't want to do. Looking into your mind, I see you can only manipulate fire. Guess what! I can create it." Slowly, an aura of fire grew around Lily. Her eyes flashed a deadly crimson, causing John to fall back and hit a brick wall. "I came to this planet searching for my friends. I have a feeling I won't find them through you."

"Who… who are you?" John stuttered.

"Your worst nightmare. Now go before I decide to do any damage, you poor pathetic excuse for so called mutants." Now normally it was hard to get Lily angry, but once you have, she was very dangerous.

"So called mutants?" Rogue looked over at Bobby, but he just shrugged.

"Don't ask me."

"Well?" asked Lily. "Are you leaving?"

"Yes…" John attempted to run, but stumbled in the process. Struggling to get back up, he looked back at Lily and ran around the corner, out of sight.

"Wow Lily. That was amazing." Rogue smiled slightly, and looked at Bobby.

"You're scared. I can tell." Lily shook her head. "I don't blame you. But I'm not a mutant. Never call me a mutant." Lily tossed her hair back and started to walk away. She didn't want to stick around people who were afraid of her, especially people she liked.

"Wait," Bobby called out to Lily. "Maybe you should come to the institute with us." Lily admired their bravery. Even though they were scared of her, they still wanted her around.

"Institute?" Lily turned to look at him. _Hm… he's kinda cute. Too bad he's taken._ Brushing that thought to the side, she took a peek into his mind. "A school for mutants?"

"Yes," Rogue answered her. "It's a good school and you'll meet a lot of nice people."

"You include me in the 'us'. I'm not like you. And don't ask. You wouldn't understand, but I will come to this institute with you." Lily gave off a small smile. "It sounds interesting."

"Wolvy!" Sakura, a young girl with ice blue eyes and black hair with silver streaks, glomped Wolverine. She let out a small giggle.

"Kid, how many times have I told you not to call me that?" Wolverine walked down the hall with the young girl clinging to his back. Obviously this happened often.

"But Wolvy! It's so cute!" Sakura whined, clinging even tighter to him.

"There's nothing cute about it. Now get off." Wolverine tried shrugging her off. "Kid." But she held on tightly.

"You're so mean." Sakura reluctantly let go and retreated off to her room.

"Hey Sakura!" Jubilee went to catch up with her friend. "Sakura! Hello! I'm talking to you!" She let out a small huff as Sakura finally stopped and turned to face her.

"Oh, hi Jubilee."

"What wrong with you?" Jubilee followed Sakura into their room.

"Wolvy is being mean again!" Sakura whined.

"Oh, stop whining. You know how he is. That's just the way he acts. It's all a façade. He don't want people to know he's actually a softie." Jubilee patted Sakura on the head. "It's alright Sakura."

"I guess. Hey, we gotta get to class soon," Sakura suddenly remembered. "We have enough tardies."

"Oh yeah." Both girls scooped up their books and ran out of the room. They stumbled down the stairs, both crashing into something and falling to the ground.

"That's why you shouldn't run inside."

Both girls looked to see their professor, Jean. They smiled nervously and stood, dusting themselves off. Jean just clicked her tongue at them.

"Hello Professor Grey," the girls chorused. They looked at each other and started giggling. Ringing throughout the institute was the bell for class, and both girls rushed past Jean and into class.

"You're late!" Jean shouted after them.

After class, both girls were held for detention. Sighing, they started grading the test they had all just taken.

"Did you girls even study?" Jean handed Jubilee and Sakura their test. "You passed… but barely." Both girls stared down at their large D's. "I want you both in here helping me for an hour everyday this month."

"Professor Storm's lesson today was pretty cool." Talya sat down on a bench just outside the institute. Her grey eyes searched the grounds, seeing if there were anyone she recognized. Her friend, Kitty, sat down right beside her and attempted to braid Talya's long blonde hair with blue highlights that reached the ground when she stood.

"It was interesting," Kitty agreed. Looking at her, Kitty noticed the look that appeared on Talya's face. She looked lonely again. "You're thinking about her, aren't you?"

"I'm sorry. It's just, I really think that Lily would like it here. I haven't seen her in like forever."

"Forever being how long?"

"A few years I think." Talya sighed. "I'm sorry. It's just, she was my best friend and I don't even know if she's okay." Shaking her head, Talya opened up a book. "Anyway, enough about that. We have an essay to worry about."

"Good point." Both girls got to writing. Talya was a good student, and made a point of never getting into trouble at the institute. Her power was controlling the wind, though she had more secrets than she cared to let on to everyone here.

"Talya," Kitty called out to her. "It's getting dark. Maybe we should go inside now."

Looking at her friend, Talya blinked, realizing that they were still outside. "Oh, yeah… right. Let's go then." She gathered her stuff and the two girls went inside.

"So tell me more about your friend, Lily," Kitty asked.

"She's a psycho demon. She's smart and beautiful," Talya simply explained.

"You say the same thing every time."

"Because one day for sure you will meet her, and then you will see for yourself what she's like."

"But you said you're not even sure if she's okay," Kitty decided to point out to her friend.

"I know, but at the same time I have a feeling that she is, and that I'll see her soon. I hope I do at least."

Kitty didn't quite understand Talya, but chose not to question her. The two went up to their room, both deciding to turn in for the night.

Jen sat alone in her room. She could feel it, her cousin's presence. Smiling brightly she braided her blue hair. "I knew she'd arrive soon." She closed her text book, having just finished all her homework. Jen laid back on her bed and stared over at the extra bed in her room. It was great having a room all to herself, but it was lonely as well. Jen didn't like it much.

Jen thought back to Rogue. She was supposed to be moving into the room with her, but hadn't gotten to it yet. Jen liked the idea, but if her cousin was really here, she liked the idea of sharing a room with her even better.

Smiling, Jen rolled over and closed her eyes, thinking back to the fun times with her cousin. Before Jen knew it, her thoughts turned into dreams.

Kathryn stared up at the stars. "She's coming." Slowly Kat rose from her spot in the grass and walked towards the institute. She was about to go inside when she decided to stay out tonight and sleep at her secret spot.

Turning around, Kat left the institute grounds. After walking for about ten minutes, Kat entered what looked to be a broken down house, but what was on the outside wasn't what was on the inside. Inside was beautiful. It was a little on the dark side, but still had that cozy feeling that made you feel like you were at home. Faeries outlined the walls, giving that welcome look.

Kat lit a few candles. She didn't really feel like turning on the lights. They were usually too bright for her. She pulled out a blanket and curled up on the couch. Kat just lay there for awhile, watching the candles burn, till they flickered out and she fell asleep.

A/N: So what do you think? Please review. Any type of review is good for me. I accept kind and evil ones.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

_So, here I was… on Earth… already meeting nice people, and actually enjoying myself to tell the truth. Earth was beautiful so far, but the people… humans… were nasty. I couldn't stand them. I couldn't stand the way they treated mutants… us. We were people as well, so why? Was this why we were forbidden to ever go to Earth?_

Kitty sat in the dark in her room that she shared with Talya. Talya was already asleep, so Kitty was basically on her own at the moment. She stared out the window and saw as Rogue and Bobby walked through the gates and toward the institute. What caught Kitty's attention though was the figure that trailed along behind them.

"She's beautiful," Kitty said to no one but herself. "Who is she?" She decided to go downstairs to find out for herself who this mysterious girl was.

Making sure not to wake up her roommate, Kitty phased through the door. Too impatient to wait for the elevator, she ran down the stairs. When she reached the bottom floor, she quietly snuck down the hall and peeked around the corner. There stood the girl with Rogue and Bobby. They were all talking to Professor Xavier. Kitty leaned in a little closer so that she could hear what they might be saying to one another.

"And you are?" the Professor asked the girl.

"Lily Hino."

Kitty's eyes opened wide as she recognized the name. That was the girl that Talya always talked about. She wasn't lying when she said Lily was beautiful.

"What is it you want Lily? You aren't like most mutants, are you? There's something about you."

"Professor, next time you try to read mind, just know you can't." It sounded almost like a threat to Kitty. "I'm looking for a few people and I believe they're here."

"You may be right. Feel free to search for your friends here and stay as long as you like. I would like to get to know more about you," the Professor explained to Lily.

Kitty saw Lily smile and heard her say, "Thank you. I appreciate that." Lily's next comment surprised her though. "Next time I'd appreciate it even more if none of your students were spying on me. She seems like a nice girl though. What's her name? Kitty?" The Professor nodded. "Then come out Kitty and show more manners."

Kitty stumbled out of her hiding spot and walked over to Lily. "H-hello," she stuttered. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to spy. It's just I saw you from the window, and you were so pretty and I wanted a closer look and then I heard your name and I realized who you were."

"You know who I am? You mean you've heard of me before?" Lily was ecstatic. "By who? Who told you about me? Who do you know?"

"Um… uh… T-Tal." Kitty slowly backed away, afraid that Lily would attack her.

"Talya?" Lily squealed. "Talya's here?" She started jumping up and down, full of energy and excitement. Even though she didn't quite know her, Lily hugged Kitty. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Xavier smiled, happy that Lily had already discovered one of her friends. Hopefully she would find the rest of her friends.

Lily turned to Xavier and bowed. "Thank you again Professor. I really appreciate this."

"No thanks necessary Lily. Rogue, please show her to her room."

"Yes Professor. Lily, follow me." Rogue walked off, Lily close behind. Kitty went back to her room, as did Bobby. The Professor sat for a moment, pondering more about Lily. She was a very interesting person, and secretive, making her mysterious.

"Here you go." Rogue stopped in front of a door and handed Lily a key. "This was for when I moved in, but since it's your room now, you can have it."

"Thank you, Rogue." Lily took the key and entered the room. She wasn't going to turn on the light, but there was a familiar feeling and so she started searching for the switch and gasped when the light flickered on. Curled on one bed was one that Lily had been searching for. Squealing for joy, she attacked the sleeping person, shouting, "JEN!"

Jen's eyes flew open at the sound of a squeal and felt someone land on top of her. She decided it had to be Rogue, until she heard a familiar voice shout her name. Jen turned to look at the person and squealed herself. "Lily!" The two cousins embraced each other.

"I'm so happy. I've already found two of you," Lily explained to Jen.

"Who else did you find?" Jen asked, surprised to hear that another of their group was here.

"Tal. You mean you didn't know?"

"No. I thought I was the only one here."

"Oh. Then that means the others might be here and we may never know." Lily sighed. This was just their luck.

"Don't worry Lily," Jen tried to assure her cousin. "If anyone can find the others, it'd be you. You'll be able to sense them. I'm sure of it." Lily nodded, finally agreeing. Though the two girls wanted to talk and catch up on things, they both decided it was best if they get some sleep. They'd have more time to talk the next day.

The next morning was bright. Lily groaned, forgetting where she was, and rolled off the bed. Letting out a small scream, she jumped back up. Jen jumped up as well, startled by the sound. The two cousins looked at each other and started laughing.

"That is so like you Lily." Jen poked her cousin on the forehead. "So how'd you find this place anyway?" Jen walked over to her wardrobe and started changing into some jeans and a light blue shirt.

"Oh, I ran into Rogue and Bobby and they brought me here. Bobby's really cute." Lily smiled. "Mind if I borrow an outfit? I need to go shopping later today."

Jen searched her wardrobe and frowned. "Nothing here your style. You should try some of Rogue's clothes." After running a brush through her hair, Jen grabbed a bag and led Lily out of the room. "We'll head over there now." They walked down the hall and climbed up the stairs. "She has a lot of stuff I think you'll like." Jen stopped in front of a door and knocked.

Not even a second later Rogue opened the door smiling. "Jen! Lily! I see the two of you are already acquainted." She pulled them into her room.

"Actually Rogue," Jen started, "this is the cousin that I always talk about."

Rogue's eyes widened. "How ironic is that? So what brings the two of you over to hell?" Rogue referred to her room as that because she shared the room with one of the nastiest girls in school, Tabitha, also known as Boom Boom.

"She needs an outfit," Jen explained. "She's kind of lacking a wardrobe at the moment. Figured after class we could bring her out shopping."

"No prob. Help yourself to whatever you want."

Lily smiled and started searching through all of Rogue's clothes. Finally deciding on what she wanted, she threw on a black skirt that reached just below the knees and a bright red blouse that weaved up on the front up into a bow with sleeves that flared out. To top it all off, Lily put on some black leather knee high boots. Spinning in front of the mirror, she was satisfied with the look.

"Wow… you make my own clothes look better than I can. I think I'm gonna cry." Rogue faked sobs, causing the other two girls to laugh. "Anyway Lily, me and Jen are gonna have to head to class, and the Professor's gonna wanna talk with ya so we'll see ya after class, kay?" Lily nodded and watched as Jen and Rogue headed in one direction. Lily headed in the other direction towards the Professor's office.

As she reached the office, Lily didn't even take the time to knock on the door. She could sense that he had been waiting for her and so she just walked in. "Hello Professor."

"Hello Lily. Have a seat." Lily nodded and sat down. The Professor cleared his throat. "I want to know more about you Lily. Where did you come from? And besides looking for your friends, why are you here? And also, just what powers do you hold?"

Lily blinked and then just smiled. "I'd answer you if I could, but see Professor, I think in due time your questions shall be answered. Right now is not the time." The Professor sighed, showing his disappointment, but he wasn't about to argue with her. He didn't know how powerful she was, and he wasn't going to take any chances. "Also, during my stay here, I'm sure I'm to take classes like the rest of your students here? I would like a schedule."

"I see you don't delay. I figured you'd like some time to adjust before you started your classes." The Professor started typing up a schedule on his computer.

"Oh, no need to adjust. I mean really, in any other school they don't really give you time to adjust. It's just a waste. I want something to do. And besides, I like studying. Everybody needs a little education in their life."

The Professor looked at Lily almost in disbelief. "I don't get that from any of my students." He printed off her schedule and handed it to Lily. "Here is your schedule. Your classes begin tomorrow. You are dismissed." Lily nodded and left the room.

Later that day, Lily met up with Jen and Rogue. Dragging Bobby along with them, the group left to go shopping. As Lily tried on many clothes that day, the only opinion she really enjoyed was that of Bobby Drake. For some reason she couldn't get her mind off of him. She figured it was just how extremely hott he was. Stifling her laughter, Lily tried on one last outfit and walked out of the dressing room. Her cousin and Rogue complimented the outfit, but all Lily could really focus on was Bobby. She watched his reaction. He smiled, and reading his mind she found that he thought it looked great on her. Satisfied, Lily picked which clothes she would purchase and walked up to the front counter. Lily wasn't worried about the money. She had plenty of that, so she had purchased enough clothes to last her at least two weeks. That was basically all that she needed anyway.

After shopping, the group headed out for ice cream. Lily laughed as she watched her cousin enjoy her ice cream. She had missed this. Ice cream was Jen's favorite. They used to go out everyday to their favorite ice cream parlor. After Jen had left, Lily didn't go there anymore. She didn't see a reason to.

"Lily? Are you okay?" Lily blinked and looked over at her cousin.

"Yeah, I was just reminiscing."

Jen laughed. "Oh I see."

"Hey you guys, it's getting late," Bobby pointed out. "We should really head back soon." Everyone nodded, quickly finishing up their ice cream. Grabbing all their stuff, they left and returned to the institute.

Lily, instead of walking back inside with everyone, stayed outside to watch the stars. "I'm sorry Dad. I know you told me not to go, but I just had to. I was so curious." Lily wasn't really one for disobeying her father, but her mother… that was another story.

"Hey, you'll catch a cold if you stay out here." Lily turned to see Bobby right beside her. He slipped off his jacket and placed it on her. "It may be warm in the day, but at night it gets pretty chilly."

Lily smiled and nodded. "Thanks." The two then walked back into the institute together.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Bobby Drake? No I didn't like him. He already had a girlfriend. He was just really cute… and very nice. Besides, I didn't know him enough to actually like him. Oh, Earth? I'm enjoying it a lot. It's a wonderful place. It's so different from what I know. But I had this feeling… Like I should keep my guard up. But then again, I was on a completely different planet… one that I knew nothing about. It was only natural that I should keep my guard up.

"So you actually had a dream about it?" Jen shivered. "I know they're preparing for this war, but no one knows exactly how it's gonna go."

"I don't know, all I know is I saw everyone fighting… humans against mutants." Lily sighed. "It was very unpleasant, and I never want to see such a war, ever again."

"Then you should help us to prevent it, because we never want to see it either." The two girls looked up to see Professor Storm enter the room. "So you must be Lily." Lily nodded. "Pleased to meet you. I hope that you will enjoy today's lesson."

"I'm sure I will Professor, as long as it's interesting."

"So are you a psychic?" Storm looked at her curiously.

"That and I create fire."

"Interesting."

"Interesting indeed." Lily turned to face a boy. He had sleek black hair. His eyes were interesting. The left one was white, with a scar over it. The other one was brown. He had only looked at her for a moment. After that he turned away.

"And you are?" Lily asked.

"Morion Huan or Delotha." He seemed to be almost ignoring her.

"Hate?" Lily raised an eyebrow and watched as Storm walked up to the front to prepare for class.

"You understand elvish."

Lily shrugged. "A little. I have a couple of friends who are interested in elves." Lily opened up her book and began writing the assignment Storm had just assigned to them.

"Whatever." He opened up his book as well and did the assignment. Lily watched him for a little. Everyone was working with partners, but Morion was working by himself… why? Lily guessed that he was a very withdrawn person. Lily had no interest in a guy like that. But still… as she tried to concentrate on her assignment, she'd find her gaze focusing on Morion again. Shaking her head, she lectured herself. _'Concentrate Lily. There are more important things at the moment. Like the assignment. I want to pass don't I? Of course I do… so concentrate.'_

"Talking to yourself again Lily?" Jen laughed at her cousin.

"Ha ha. Just because you can hear my thoughts doesn't mean anything." Lily stuck her tongue out at her cousin and the two girls giggled. "Hey, that guy Morion… what's he like?" Lily hadn't meant to ask. It's not like she cared anyway, but the question had come out.

"Who? Delotha? Don't tell me you've taken an interest in him."

"No…" Lily quickly looked away from her cousin.

"Don't try to hide it from me." Jen started laughing at her cousin. "But seriously, stay away from him. He's trouble. No good ever comes from being around him. Plus, he doesn't care about anyone, and he makes no effort to talk to anyone. I'm warning you Lily." Lily was listening to her cousin, really she was, but she just couldn't help it. She was very curious about Morion. Was it really as her cousin said? Or was he just one of the many misunderstood people out there… like herself?

At the end of class Lily headed over to Professor Jean's class. Not paying attention to her surroundings, she bumped head first into someone and fell back. "Ow…" She started to get up, when she heard a familiar voice call out her name.

"Lily?" Lily looked up, and nearly fell back down again at the sight of her friend. Smiling, she glomped Sakura, knocking both of them to the ground once again. "Gah, okay Lily. Can't breathe. Choking."

"Oh, heh." Lily pushed off of Sakura, stood and put out a hand, helping Sakura to her feet. "Sorry."

"When did you get here?"

"Last night. Listen, did you know that Jen and Tal are here as well?"

"What?" Sakura's eyes widened and then she sighed. "You just get here last night, and already you've found more to the group then I have. Figures." Sakura grinned. "So how's life as a run away Princess?"

Lily laughed. "Don't remind me. I'd like to forget I was ever a Princess, as I'm sure you've forgotten that you were once one, or should I not mention that?"

"Too late." Sakura growled. "Evil life. So where are you headed to now anyway?"

"Um... Professor Jean's class."

"Oh cool. That's where I'm headed as well."

"Great. We can go together." Both girls beamed and walked into the classroom.

"She's here? Lily's here?" Talya nearly jumped for joy, but kept herself under control. "Are you sure? You're not making a mistake are you?" Kitty shook her head. "Oh, that's wonderful. I'm so happy. No, happy doesn't even cover it. Oh never mind. I just can't wait to see her. It's been so long."

"Well here she comes."

"Where?" Tal began to look around and spotted Lily, Jen and Sakura. "What?"

"Tal!" Lily ran over and hugged her friend. When she pulled away, Tal looked happy and confused.

"Sakura and Jen? I didn't know that you guys were here. How long have you both been here?"

"For awhile it seems," Jen answered. "We just never knew it. So we were all under the same roof and oblivious to each other's presence. Lucky us, Lily came along."

"Hello Kitty." Lily hugged the girl. "Thanks for letting me meet you guys here." Earlier, Lily had a class with Kitty. They had arranged a meeting so that Lily could finally see Tal. Finally, Lily only had one more from the runaway group to find. She wondered if she would really find her here.

"Thinkin' 'bout me Lily?" Kat walked up beside Lily. "Don't." She brushed past and walked into the institute. Lily blinked and shrugged. That answered her question. Same old, same old.

"So they have a new student." Magneto smiled. "Wonderful. Maybe she's worth recruiting."

"Doubt it." Magneto and Mystic turned toward John as he casually walked into the room. "She's not worth it. Dangerous I tell ya… and crazy."

"So you've met her."

"Yeah, and it wasn't a pleasant meeting. She's after some friends. Got no business with anyone else. I think she's with them."

"Well, we'll have to work around that. Find out more about her."

"You mean return to the institute?" John shook his head. "No way."

"Not you." Magneto turned his gaze elsewhere. "I mean Mystic."

Tal lay on her bed, not believing that it was really Lily. Lily was here. Tal had finally got to see her best friend. It was like as if it was a dream. Was she dreaming? She shook her head. No. It was real. It was actually real. Lily was here… in this very institute. She had finally come.

Tal got up and slipped on a cute outfit of a jean skirt and a pink blouse with Marilyn on it. She threw her long hair up in a pink bow. Tonight her and her friends were celebrating their reunion. First everyone went to the movies, then they found a small club on a corner not too far from the movies. They spent all night dancing, remembering their past days together, enjoying themselves, like they had never lost one another. It was almost like a day hadn't passed where they weren't with each other. It was like it used to be. They were in the past.

Tal bumped against someone and laughed as she turned around to apologize. "I'm sorry," she said, but paused to get a good look at the guy. He was tall, with brown hair. He wore a long brown jacket and held cards in one hand.

"You play cards, Sugar? Cuz Remy loves cards." Tal couldn't help but laugh. He was cute.

"So I guess you're Remy. I'm Talya."

"Or you can call her Voice." Lily leaned over her friend's shoulder, and winked at Remy. "She's our Voice of Reason while we stray to the wild side. Name's Lily. Nice meeting you Remy." She shook his hand and returned to her other friends, bumping hips with them and throwing her hair all over the place.

Remy laughed. "Your friend is an interesting one." He took Tal's hand and led her through the next dance. She found herself screaming with laughter and enjoying herself more than she had ever remembered before. By the end of the night, Tal was dancing on clouds. Her body was floating and nothing felt real anymore. She floated on home and went to sleep in warm cozy bed. She had peaceful dreams for the first time in years.

Lily continued dancing under the stars by herself. She didn't care if she looked like an idiot. She was comfortable that way. She felt free. She wasn't bound to anything. Nature around her spoke and she dance with it.

"A little lonely dancing by yourself isn't it?" Lily, startled, stumbled and fell toward the ground. An arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her back up. "You should be more careful," a voice breathed across her ear.

"Bobby…" She pulled away and turned to face him. "What are you doing out here?"

"I should be asking you the same thing. It's cold out here and you're dancing around in a dress. Are you crazy?"

"Crazy? No, I'm not crazy." Lily laughed as she swayed under the moonlight. "You see… I'm insane."

The next day went by slowly. Lily sat in class, wondering when it would end… if time would move quicker. But it never did. Time moved… one second at a time. Her head pounded. She didn't have any drinks the night before, they couldn't drink. It was illegal. So then why was her head pounding so much?

Lily leaned over against her desk, burying her head into her arms. She was practically pulling on her own hair, trying to make the pounding go away. She tried listening to Storm's lecture, but just couldn't seem to hear what she was saying over the ringing in her ears. She got ready to leave the class when a hand pressed down against her head.

"Are you okay?" Lily sat up. Morion turned away.

"Yeah… I'm fine." The shock of Morion speaking to her caused her to forget about her headache.

"Whatever. Just listen to the lecture already. You were annoying me."

Lily blinked and then growled. Why the nerve of that jerk. Who did he think he was talking to her like that? Lily slammed her hand down on her desk and started taking notes. She was so angry with Morion's attitude that she had completely forgotten about the pounding in her head.

AN: To any and all who read this I have decided that the next chapter shall not be posted until I have at least one review for this chapter. I just need to know that someone out there is actually reading it. Luv ya all. Bai bai.


	4. Chapter 4

AN: In this chapter you will meet Nightcrawler, but he is not the Nightcrawler that you know from the movie. I wanted a younger and cooler Nightcrawler, so I borrowed the one from X-Men Evolution. I'm sure you all know him, and hopefully love him as much as I do. Enjoy.

Vine – Thank you for your review and to answer your question, yes, their pasts will be revealed later on in the fic.

Micki – Well here's your chapter, dork. Enjoy! P

Chapter 4

I was adjusting to life on Earth. It actually wasn't that bad. I liked it, but I'm slowly starting to realize how much I actually missed home… and I wasn't even gone that long. Amazing how that works, huh? But it's not really home that I missed, but more like my family. No… home included. Who couldn't like living in a castle? It was my status. Goodbye Princess.

"Lily, no, we'll get in trouble," Tal pleaded with her friend. "We shouldn't do this."

"Who cares if we get in trouble?" Lily patted her friend on the back. "What are they going to do to us? Kick us out? This is an institute to keep mutants like us out of trouble. They wouldn't just toss us out for playing pranks on others." Lily concentrated her energy and threw tiny flame balls at people. They were so small, all they did was sting people and poof, they were gone. No one knew what was going on.

Next was Jen's turn. As people were walking down the hallway, she would freeze the floor and they would go sliding smack into the wall. She motioned to Sakura. Sakura moved up. She watched as people walked by, waiting for the right moment. When she thought it was time, little lights would flash everywhere. Blinded, everyone would start screaming, and running into one another, unable to see where they were going.

When everyone took their turns, they tried to get Tal to join in using her powers for playful activities like this. Tal refused to do so, for the fact that their powers were simply not there for their amusement. They shouldn't be using them in such a way. Everyone groaned and rolled their eyes at her.

"Okay Voice," they all say, but what they really meant was, "Whatever Voice." Tal knew this. They were her friends after all. She should understand them better than anyone else.

Lily patted her friend on the back. "Don't worry Tal. You don't have to join in on the fun." Sakura laughed. "Just don't think that you can escape us." Tal groaned. She knew this already. But then if she weren't around to try and convince them of trying not to pull pranks on others, then who would?

Jen was walking through the hall trying to get to her next class. She sighed, not really sure if she wanted to go. She shook her head and decided to skip. Making a turn, she headed for the yard. She sat down on a bench and started reading a book.

"Is it good?"

"Usually is." Jen closed her book and looked up at Bobby, who took a seat next to her. "So how are you and Rogue doing? Sometimes she's so unsure of your relationship, but you seem to handle it so well."

"I'm not so sure." Bobby leaned back and stared up at the sky. "We were distant before, but now it seems to be getting worse."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Jen set her hand on her friend's shoulder, drawing his attention to her. "You'll be fine. Even if it doesn't work out with Rogue, I'm sure you'll find someone."

"Thanks Jen."

Jen nodded and got up. "I skipped last period, we should really go to our next class." Bobby nodded and stood as well. Just as the two started on their way to class, a blue creature had appeared in front of them. Jen jumped back and Bobby just stood there blinking.

"Hey Kurt."

"Bobby, where were you? We were supposed to finish our lab today, but you weren't in class."

"Oh, was that today?" Bobby started cursing.

"Care to introduce us?" Jen asked, stepping up next to her friend.

"Oh yeah. Jen this is Kurt. Kurt this is Jen."

"Pleased to meet you." Jen put her hand out, taking Kurt's. "Well, I'd love to stay and chat, but that's the warning bell for the next class so we better go."

"Oh yeah!" The two boys rushed off and Jen just laughed, watching as they disappeared around a corner.

Kat set her books down on her desk. She grabbed Lily's pencil and started filling in her homework answers. Lily just shook her head. Of course Kat didn't do it the night before. She had probably wandered off to her secret spot again. Kat distanced herself so much from others, but Lily gave up trying to get her to join everyone. It was pointless really.

"Kat, did you study for today's test?"

"Didn't need to," Kat responded in a monotone voice. "I'll pass. Don't worry." Kat passed back Lily's pencil and laid her head on her desk, falling right to sleep.

"Class, we have a new student today." Lily looked up front to see who the student was. The new girl had bright pink and green hair in thick curls that fell just past her knees. Her eyes were covered with glasses.

"Mara says hi. You can call Mara Monkey if you please. Mara is very happy to be here." Mara took a seat in front of Lily. Lily smiled. So far Mara was already an interesting person.

"You wanted to speak with me Professor?" Lily took a seat in Xavier's office. She accepted a pack of paper that Xavier handed to her. Lily flipped through it, skimming through the info. "What's all this?"

"There's a new mutant school that just opened. It's corrupting innocent mutants. They're terrorizing humans and causing destruction. You're very skilled. I want you to pick a team and investigate this school. You and your team will pretend to be new students at this school, and you will block their minds, make sure that none of you are caught. This is your first mission Lily. I'm trusting you to get this done right. No mistakes or it could mean the destruction of your entire team."

Lily nodded. "Thank you Professor. I'll do my best."

Lily couldn't believe it. The Professor had chosen her to do a mission. She had hardly been at this school. She was sure there were other people more suited for this, yet he had still chosen her. Shaking her head she searched through the school file on potential teammates. She was actually going on a mission, not only that, she was in charge of this mission. Thinking it over, she couldn't help but smile. After searching the school data base, she picked her team.

"You could have chosen anyone, why us?" Kitty asked. She sat down next to Jen, who was sitting across from Bobby.

"Because I trust all of you with my life, just as I hope you all trust me with yours. Other than that, Kitty, I'm going to require you to do most of the spying, being as you can phase through solid objects, that being walls. Jen, I'm going to need you to hack into the school's database. You're much better at that than I will ever be. Bobby, well, I just decided I needed another teammate." Lily threw down the pack of paper on the table in the middle of everyone. "All the information you need of this school is right there. If we need anymore, we'll have to gather it ourselves." Lily's attention turned towards the door. "Nice of you to join us, Tal. I was starting to wonder if you were part of our team or not."

Tal nodded shyly and took the seat next to Bobby. "I'm sorry."

"So this is where the meeting is taking place." Morion walked into the room. He picked up the pack of paper on the table and started flipping through it. "So what do we gotta do?"

"What are you doing here?" Lily asked, in a not so nice voice.

"My, aren't we a little rude today. I decided to help you all out. Besides, it's a chance to leave this stupid school. Who wouldn't want that?"

"This isn't a game," Lily practically shouted. "We don't need you on our team. Leave at once."

"Well, I was talking to the Professor, and he said if I wanted to go I could. So guess what, I'm coming. Too bad for you and your little crew, huh?"

Lily muttered something under her breath but no one quite got what it was that she said. She fell back into her chair and took a deep breath. She missed life on Mars. It was so much simpler than life here.

"Wait. Mara can't catch up." Lily turned and stopped, allowing Mara to catch up to her and take a quick breather. "Mara hears that you are leaving tomorrow morning." Lily had gone to the mall to relax herself for the mission. She had told the rest of her teammates to do the same thing, so they were around here somewhere. Mara must have come to the mall on her own and saw Lily walking around.

"Oh, yeah. We have a mission to take care of. You know... mutant stuff." Mara laughed. "So Mara, where do you come from anyway?" Lily bit into a granola bar she had grabbed for a quick snack. In a rush to just escape the institute, Lily had forgotten her purse back in her dorm room, so this was all she could afford for the moment.

"Jupiter!"

Lily chocked on her granola bar. It took her a minute to regain herself. "Say what?"

"Jupiter!"

"You're lying."

"Am not."

"Then why have I never met you before now?"

"You were never meant to meet Mara until now." Mara stole Lily's granola bar and ate the rest of it.

"Hey! That was my lunch."

"You'll live." Mara danced around Lily. "Mara will buy you lunch. Come, let us talk." Lily sighed and followed Mara to the food court. They both ordered burgers and took a seat at a table. "Mara heard that the royal children had left their planet homes. Everyone suspects that you're all here. Mara wanted to see what Earth was like so she followed. Are you mad at Mara?"

Lily laughed. "What reason would I have to be mad at you? You only did what the rest of us did. And only some of the royal children left. When I spoke to Angy, she wouldn't hear of it, and refused to allow Kali to leave as well."

"But that's it. All the other's left. Well, except Kat's siblings. Mara just wanted to see what was so exciting to draw royalty here."

"It's not that it's exciting exactly. It's just, we were never allowed on Earth, so many of us got together and decided to one day leave and explore it for ourselves. We were always good at not listening to our parents. I think the only none royalty here is Talya, but she was my best friend and daughter of my father's general, Moon." Lily thought back to the times when she was on Mars.

"Do you miss it?" Mara asked her.

"Yes, but I'm glad I came to Earth. I have no regrets."

"Okay, today marks the first day of our mission. I hope everyone took the time to relax themselves yesterday. Let's try not to screw this one up. We're going into enemy territory, and one mistake could mark the end of our lives." Lily smiled to her teammates, her friends.

The group walked up to the school where Emma Frost, the headmistress here, stood waiting. "Welcome. You must be the new students. Come this way. I shall show you your rooms." The group looked around at each other and followed Emma in. "Here you will learn to control your powers. So you're all against humans as well?" She smiled with satisfaction. "I'm glad. Here we teach humans to be afraid of us. We want to show them who's in charge. Humans are such fragile creatures. They're terrified of us, and that's how it should be."

"Yeah… right." Lily said to only herself. Lily really didn't want to be here. If it had been just her, sure, she wouldn't have cared, but others were involved. If anyone got hurt, or worse, died, because of her, she would never forgive herself. Bobby caught what she said and took her hand in his, giving her a small squeeze so she knew they'd be alright. Morion caught this action and just glared. He wasn't sure why he was so upset, but he was. Then again, he never did like Bobby before, so why should he start liking him now?

"Okay, the boys, Delotha and Ice Man can take this room." Emma opened a door for them. "Right next door will be Voice, Fire Soul, Shadowcat and Freeze." Before they had arrived here, the group had decided that they would use their mutant names instead of their real ones. There was no point in anyone actually knowing what their real names were. Emma led the girls into their room. Everyone threw their bags down onto whatever bed they had claimed. After Emma left, Lily went to check on the boys. Bobby was at the door waiting for her.

"Hey Fire Storm. Got yourselves a good room?" The two went walking down the hall, both planning on exploring the new school.

"Ice Man, are you going to be okay sharing a room with Delotha?" Lily looked up at Bobby, concern written all over her face.

"Don't worry. I won't kill him."

"Oh great." Lily rolled her eyes. "Now all I have to worry about is him killing you." She sighed. "Why am I here?"

Bobby took Lily's arm, causing her to stop walking. He forced her to look up at him. He looked around to make sure that no one was watching, then leaned down and started whispering to her, "Lily, you know why. The Professor trusts you, as we all trust you, so have some faith in yourself." Lily smiled and hugged him.

"Thank you Ice Man."

Tal came running down the hall and Lily blinked. "Fire Storm!" Tal stopped running and took deep breaths. "Remember when we went to the club and I met that uber cute guy? What was his name? Remy?"

"Yeah, I remember." Lily encouraged her to keep talking.

"Well, he goes to this school. I was just exploring, and I went to look out a window because it's so beautiful outside, and I saw him, talking to Emma."

"Interesting." Lily grinned. "I didn't know you like them bad," she teased her friend.

"Li-" But Tal caught herself. "Fire Storm just you wait. You'll get what's coming to you." With that she huffed and walked away. Lily couldn't help but laugh.

"That's so like her. Taking it so personally." Lily looked up at Bobby who just smiled down at her. Lily liked being with Bobby. He was fun and easy to talk to. She felt so comfortable with him.

"Don't you have a girlfriend?" Lily jumped and turned to Morion, holding her hand over her chest. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you Fire Storm, though I didn't know you were one for stealing your friend's boyfriends. I mean, Rogue is your friend, right?"

"Shut up Delotha. It's not like that."

"Maybe not to you." Morion looked to Bobby. "But to him, I think it is, right Ice Man?"

Bobby just glared at him. "Shut up Delotha. You don't know what you're talking about. It's none of your business anyway."

"I heard that yours and Rogue's relationship is a little rocky lately. Could it be because you're falling in love with someone else?"

That was it. Lily couldn't take it anymore. "Will you stop it? What is your problem with everyone else anyway? You don't like Ice Man, I get that, but you don't have to act like such a jerk. Grow up will you?"

"Who's the one who needs to grow up? What's it to you anyway? Why? You falling for him?"

Without thinking Lily had raised her hand and before she knew it, it had connected with Morion's face. A stinging sensation traveled up her arm. "I'm sorry." She turned and ran to her room. Morion just stood their holding his cheek.

"If you like her so much, you should learn not to hurt her feelings," Bobby warned.

"Yeah right. Why would anyone like her? She's not even attractive." Morion took one last challenging look at Bobby and then walked off.

AN: Well, what did you think? Wow, Lily's on her first real mission. Please review and give me your thoughts. I love you all!


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

So here we were in a completely different school now. I had actually been sent on my first mission ever. Did Professor Xavier really trust me that much? Actually, I wonder if he was just testing my skills as a leader. When I first arrived I did kind of take control, not really meaning to. I mean, that's how a Princess was raised after all. We didn't let people tell us what to do, and we didn't take no for an answer. But I was worried. I wasn't going to fail was I? And not only that, I think Bobby and Morion have been fighting a little… no wait… a lot more lately, and I think it's all my fault. I'm so confused.

Jen wandered the halls aimlessly. She really was bored here. Sure, she was with friends, but it still felt lonely compared to Xavier's Institute. The people here had a real vendetta against human beings. Jen couldn't understand why. She wished that everyone could just get along. Back on the other planets, there were no problems such as this.

At the moment the X-Men were just taking their time to get to know the school better and to blend in with the students. Lily had told them that she spoke with Xavier, and he had said that he didn't want them rushing through this mission. He would prefer that they all return alive and intact. Jen had agreed. There was no point in rushing things, but at the same time, she really didn't like being at this school. It was lonely and at the same time somehow disturbing. The sooner they were done here, the better.

Jen wandered outside and sat under a tree, taking the time to enjoy a breath of fresh air. She liked it better out here. Inside was stuffy, and she felt trapped. Out here, she felt free, almost like she could just fly away, even though she knew she couldn't. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the small breeze that brushed past her. It was very comforting.

She had wanted to hang out with at least one of her friends, but Talya was off stalking Remy. Lily went for a walk with Bobby, and Kitty was wandering the halls, seeing if she could gather any useful info they might need later. The only one left was Morion and Jen didn't really like him. She wasn't sure what her cousin's interest in him was, but whatever. It's not like she was the one who liked him. She shivered at the thought. _Gross! _She hoped that Lily didn't really fall for Morion. Now Bobby on the other hand, Jen liked Bobby. He was the first friend that she had made here on Earth. She wouldn't mind if her cousin hooked up with Bobby.

Jen stood. She was bored. She decided to turn invisible and see if there was anything interesting going on. Since most people didn't know of this ability, Jen went around, brushing past people and moving things around, enjoying their reactions when they didn't know what was going on. Some students started rumors that the school was suddenly haunted and someone must have angered a sleeping spirit or something like that. She returned to her room, laughing so hard, loving the frightened looks. She didn't like anyone here, and so it made it much better. Sighing, she decided she didn't want to be here anymore, but was going to make it worthwhile.

Tal sat on a bench, admiring Remy from afar. _He's so sexy,_ she thought. _I wonder if he even remembers me._ Ever since she found out that he went to this school, she hadn't spoken to him once, for fear that he wouldn't remember her, and would just think her some crazy girl who was stalking him. Poetry ran around in her head, the only way she could express how she was feeling at the moment. She wished she had a pen and her poetry book with her.

"It's a beautiful day, isn't it?" Talya blinked, looking up to see who was speaking to her. She nearly jumped, when she saw Remy standing there. She must have been so deep in thought that she didn't even notice him walk over.

"Remy?"

"So you do remember me… Voice." Tal's eyes widened. He remembered her. Remy laughed at her shocked expression. "Remy doesn't forget a beautiful face such as yours." He sat down next to her. "Call me Gambit. Everyone else does." Tal nodded.

"Gambit." She smiled. "I think it sounds better!"

"Gambit thinks so too." He took Tal's hand. "Your hands are so soft, like silk." Tal blushed, not sure what to say or do. She felt butterflies at his touch. "Would you like to go somewhere tonight? Just the two of us?" Tal nodded. She wasn't going to pass up the chance to spend time with Gambit. Was this what they called love?

Kitty sighed. She had wandered around this school for quite some time now, and she still couldn't find any useful information. Shaking her head out of disappointment, she headed into the kitchen and grabbed a soda. Then she grabbed a carton of ice cream, sat down and dug in. Kitty wasn't sure just how much they could really do here. Why did the Professor have to assign a mission such as this?

"Mind if I have some?" Kitty almost missed the question. It was so quiet. She looked up to see who had asked and stared at a girl with pigtails. Thinking back through the list of students here, Kitty seemed to recall that this girl's name was Amara.

"Amara, right?" The girl nodded. "Sure." Amara sat next to her and Kitty positioned the ice cream carton between the two of them. Amara slowly helped herself to some. "No need to be shy, I won't bite." Amara blinked and looked at Kitty. "What are you doing here? You seem so different from all these other people."

Amara nodded. "Um… well, I didn't have a home before this, and Emma was so kind as to let me stay here. She was still building it at the time, so there was no one here, but me and her. When she finally opened it though, she changed, and I felt like I didn't know her anymore. I wonder if that's how she always was, I just didn't see it before. But now with all these other mutants here, I see her reflection through them. Maybe it's because she was so kind to me that I didn't try to see her cold heart, but now I do, and I'm afraid to be here."

"Why don't you leave?" Kitty asked.

"I have no where else to go." Amara looked down sadly.

Kitty smiled. "Don't worry. One day I will leave this place, and I promise to take you with me." Amara looked at her hopefully, and for the first time Kitty saw her smile.

It was dark out now, and Lily stared up at the stars, Bobby sitting right next to her. They had spent most of the day getting to know the mutants here. Most were cold towards them, and wanted nothing to do with them. Some didn't even acknowledge the fact that they were there. Lily couldn't wait to get out of there. She reached up towards the stars, almost believing that she could grab one. She kind of wished that she were back home.

"Fire Storm?" Bobby looked concerned. "Are you okay? You seem a little out of it today."

Lily blinked, a little confused at first, but when she realized what he meant, she shook her head. "No, I'm okay. Don't worry about me." She stood from her spot. "I'm going inside." She left, leaving no time for Bobby to even comment, or try to follow her inside. She just needed to be away for a little.

She started to head to her room. As she went to open her door, the door to the boy's room opened and Morion was staring at her. She knew she should just go into her room, but she didn't. Instead she stepped away from her door and walked towards Morion.

"Why did you really come on this mission? It wasn't just an excuse to leave the Institute. I know that. You can leave whenever you like without some stupid mission. So then why?" Lily searched him for an answer.

"You really want to know?"

"I wouldn't have asked if I didn't," Lily snapped.

"Easy. Truth is I heard you would be here." Lily raised an eyebrow, shook her head of disbelief and went into her room. Like he could really fool her that easily. She took off her sweater and threw it onto her bed. She pulled out a journal and started writing down what she had learned for the day.

"You okay Cuz?" Jen sat down next to her cousin. "You look tired. Maybe you should get some sleep."

"Oh yeah… tired of this place. Sleep won't cure that though." Lily scribbled a little more in the book and then closed it. She turned to face her cousin. "Aren't you?" Jen nodded. The two cousins looked at each other. Mentally communicating with one another, they decided it was a good night to head out. Slipping into some clubbing outfits, they made a break for the door. Tonight was their night, and they were going to enjoy every moment of it.

As they made their way outside, Morion happened to notice the two girls pass by. Curious, he followed them out.

"So this is what you meant." Tal laughed as she swayed back and forth to the beat of the music, Gambit right next to her. "This is the club where we first met." Tal was lost in a world of her own. She was enjoying herself for the first time in a long time. Gambit wrapped his arm around her waist, and they swayed together. When the song ended, Gambit leaned down and kissed Tal. She took a deep breath, staring up at him in shock. That had been her first kiss.

Another pair walked into the club, fun all on their minds as well. Lily twirled around her cousin and onto the dance floor. Jen laughed at the sight of her cousin, and went to go get some drinks. After Jen left, Lily twirled and came face to face with Morion. Groaning, she turned away and went in search of her cousin. Morion grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

"You hate me that much?"

"Yup." She pulled her arm away and continued her search for her cousin once again. Morion reached for her again, but Lily maneuvered her way around him. "Why won't you leave me alone? You don't care for anyone anyway. I wouldn't be surprised if you had some hidden agenda."

"Why?"

"What?" Lily stopped and turned to face him. "Why what?"

"Why do you hate me so much?"

"Well… um…" She struggled for an answer, but never actually came up with one. "I don't know. I just do. I don't need a reason."

"Yes you do. You can't just hate someone for no reason at all. Give me a reason, and then I'll leave you alone."

"And if I don't?"

"I think you're scared."

"Scared? What? Of you?" Lily laughed. "You wish. I have nothing to be scared of."

"Not of me. Of yourself… of you own feelings."

"That's it." Lily turned and walked away, disappearing into the crowd.

At that moment, Jen was sitting with some friends she had run into. Kitty and Amara sipped at some soda Jen had bought at the counter. The three girls were chatting happily when Lily came rushing towards them in a rage.

"Jen, I'm leaving. You can stay if you want."

"Lily? What's wrong?" She slipped on her jacket and followed her cousin towards the exit, leaving Kitty and Amara behind. On their way out Lily happened to bump into Talya and Gambit.

She huffed. "Glad that someone's having fun."

"Lily?" Tal pulled away from Gambit, and focused her attention on her friend. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Sorry for running into you." When Lily reached the door, her gaze fell one last time on Morion. Jen followed her cousin's gaze and she kind of guessed it had something to do with him.

"Lily, did he do something? I warned you not to mess with him. Lily?" But Lily ignored her cousin and headed out the door. "Lily, will you just stop and talk to me?"

"Fine!" Lily stopped and turned to face her cousin. "You want me to talk? I'll talk. I hate him. I hate him so much, and you want to know why I hate him?" Lily took a deep breath and choked down a sob. "It's because he's right, and I hate that he's right." Tears poured out of Lily's eyes. "Jen, I want to go home."

The next day Jen sat outside under a tree, reading a book, or rather, trying to read a book. Last night Lily just sat at her desk. She didn't even attempt to sleep. Jen had worried about her since the club. Frustrated, she slammed her book shut.

"That's not a nice way to treat a book."

Jen, startled, looked up in the tree. A certain blue creature stared down at her. "Kurt, right?" She stood and got a better look at him. "What are you doing here?"

"I got bored at the Institute, and so I was hoping I'd find Bobby, but I guess he's not around." Kurt shrugged. "Don't worry. I won't get you or anyone into any trouble. Anyway, the Professor wanted me to see how things were with all of you."

"They're fine." Jen sighed. "I could tell Bobby you stopped by if you like."

"Nah. Besides, you might be better company."

Jen smiled. "You think so?" Kurt nodded. "Then do you mind taking a walk with me?"

"Not at all."

Back at the Institute, Sakura and Jubilee were causing trouble, as per usual. Rogue, a little lonely, since all of Lily, Jen and Bobby were gone, stayed around and watched the two in their trouble making. She would have joined, but she just didn't feel up to doing anything.

"That lonely without him?" Colossus sat next to Rogue.

"Lonely? Nah." Rogue tried to play it off. "Why would I be lonely? I don't need him around to enjoy myself." It was true. What really worried her was that he was out there with Lily. Lately the two of them had been really close. They weren't just friends. They might not see it building, but Rogue, being the one on the sidelines, saw it perfectly. Could she really trust the two of them without her around? Unfortunately, it's not like she had a choice. Was there a reason that Lily hadn't recruited her for this mission? No, why would Lily do something like that. She sighed. She should have some faith in them. Lily was after all her friend.

"Hey Rogue, we're all getting together today to watch a movie later. Wanna join us?"

"Huh?" Rogue then remembered that Colossus had been talking to her. "Oh, yeah sure. What movie?"

"Don't know yet."

"Hm, I like surprises." Rogue smiled. "Count me in then." She wasn't quite sure why she was going to watch a movie with them. She'd never done so before. Perhaps she was just bored with everything lately. All her friends were gone. She had nothing better to do. Waiting for them to come back was painful and even lonelier if she didn't find something to do. Rogue stood from her seat, leaving Sakura and Jubilee to deal with their trouble making on their own. She had just about as much as them as she could take for one day.

Mara hung upside down in a tree, attracting attention to herself. It's not like that's what she was aiming for. People here just weren't up for weird actions. She on the other hand was an odd one to say the least. Before she had escaped to Earth, as she was leaving Jupiter, Mara came across one of the Jupiter elves. She was quite pretty with long flowing brown hair and green eyes. She had super human strength. Mara thought that she was visiting the castle, and stuck around for a few minutes. From what Mara could understand, her name was Mikala. She held such confidence. Mikala had been handed a note. It was to be delivered to someone. Mara wondered who.

Mara swung back and forth on the branch, too lost in thought to notice that she was tearing the branch. That is, until she came crashing to the ground. She rubbed her head and stared up at the tree. "Curse you stupid tree." Getting up, she dusted herself off. She looked up when she saw Sakura running towards her.

"Mara, have you seen Wolvy around lately?"

"Mara has not seen Wolverine and is happy about it. Mara does not like Wolverine." Just then her senses picked up and she cringed. "Damn it all to hell. Your 'Wolvy' is headed this way. Mara must leave." Mara ran before Logan had come too close. Sakura on the other hand, all too happy to hear this info, jumped Logan just as he passed the tree.

"Wolvy!"

"Damn child, have you nothing better to do?" Sakura shook her head. Logan gave up fighting with her just for the day. He was too tired for this. Calming himself, he walked into the institute, Sakura still on his back. She hummed happily, until Logan suddenly stopped. She tried to see who was there, but they were at a corner. All they saw was Mara standing there, frozen. Sakura, too curious for her own good, jumped off of Logan's back. She heard a 'Thank you' under his breath but just brushed it aside. She wanted to know what was going on.

Turning the corner, she froze in her spot. A young girl stood tall, talking to the Professor, demanding that she see Lily. Sakura shook her head, let out a squeal of excitement and jumped the poor girl.

"Micki!"

"Thank God it wasn't me this time," Logan let out.

"You know her?" Mara asked. "Mara's from…" But Mara stopped herself. If she let them know where she was from, it might lead to trouble. Mikala gave her a look that said 'smart move'. Mara shivered. Somehow she was a little frightened of her.

"From where?" the Professor asked her.

"Um… Florida… yeah, that's it. So you're Micki. Mara is happy to meet you." Mara put her hand out, but Mikala just turned to Sakura.

"Is Lily around?"

"No. She's on a mission," Sakura answered her.

"What about Jen, Tal and Kat?"

"Well, Kat is around here somewhere, but Jen and Tal are with Lily. Are you staying? You can see them when they get back," Sakura explained.

"I'm staying."

"Great!" Sakura glomped the poor girl one last time and then ran off once more to wreak havoc with Jubilee.


	6. Chapter 6

AN: Oh my GOODNESS! Is this what I think it is? Did I just update? Hello everyone. I'm sorry for the delay. I didn't have a computer with internet access so that I could update. I now have a brand new laptop all to myself, with internet access, and so you should be expecting more recent updates. Thank you for waiting.

Chapter 12

_I was getting really bored of this stupid school. Out of everyone, so far we have met only two decent people, those two being Amara and Gambit. Amara was a nice girl. I really liked her, though she was really on the shy side. Gambit on the other hand was interesting. I was happy tat Tal had found someone she liked. Me on the other hand, after my conversation with Morion the other night, I wasn't sure what to think. I did know this though. I liked Morion… a lot. But I also liked Bobby, even though he was already taken. And it was obvious that the both of them liked me back. What was a girl like me to do?_

Since that night at the club, Lily avoided all contact with Morion. If she had something to tell him or give to him or whatever, she had someone else do it for her. If she saw him in the hall or anywhere, she automatically turned and ran away. She knew it wasn't right, and that she had to talk to him, but it wasn't that easy. It wasn't just Morion that she avoided though. She also avoided Bobby. It wasn't as bad with him. She talked to him when she needed to, but other than that, she steered clear of both boys. She needed time to think.

"Fire Storm, I want to know what's going on!" Bobby came up to her. He was tired of her running away from him. "Something is wrong."

"Don't ask me. I don't know." Lily was shouting at him. She was tired of this school, and she was tired of being around Morion. She wasn't even sure why she was avoiding Bobby. "I'm confused, okay? I don't know what to think. I'm just trying to sort things out."

"Confused about what?" Bobby sat down on the couch and pulled Lily down next to him. "You know you can tell me anything."

"I'm not sure. I'm trying to figure things out Bobby. I can't tell you until I understand it more. Look, we all just need to get out of this stupid school. I think it's driving all of us crazy. Delotha is stalking me. My temper is building. Freeze is haunting people. Voice is never anywhere to be found. And Shadowcat is getting frustrated with every little thing that happens now. I want to leave." Bobby pulled Lily into a hug, and she just sat there, enjoying the comfort of his embrace.

"Well, I'm sure Rogue would love this picture." There was a flash and both Bobby and Lily looked over to glare at Morion. "Wow Fire Storm. Do you like stealing your friend's boyfriends?" He laughed as he walked away. Lily got ready to get up to attack him, but Bobby stopped her.

"Let him go. He's not worth it. Besides, it's just a hug. Rogue will understand."

"It wasn't just a hug. Not for me." Lily clenched her fist, angry at herself for the way things had been happening lately.

""What?" Bobby tried to look at her face, but Lily stood and turned away from him.

"Delotha is right. But it's not about stealing you from Rogue. I'm sorry Ice Man. Please just stay away from me from now on."

"Lily, did you even ask him how he feels?" Lily's cousin asked her. Lily only shook her head. They were out shopping today. Lily hadn't wanted to stay at the school, so Jen suggested they go and spend their time just throwing money around.

"It doesn't matter anyway. He has Rogue. He doesn't need me." Lily walked into a small store with petite clothes.

"Lily…" Jen only shook her head, following her cousin in. "What now? You can't have Bobby. What are you going to do?"

"Nothing. There's nothing to do." Lily picked up a skirt and stood in front of a mirror, holding the skirt up to her. She shook her head and set it back on its rack.

"I hate to say it Lily, you know I really do, but there is something you can do." Lily looked at her cousin a little confused. "Bobby isn't the only one you like, is he?"

"What?"

"I see it everyday Lily, and especially that night at the club. You like Morion. Don't tell me you don't. You can't lie to me. We have a connection, remember?" Lily sighed.

"Unfortunately. It's times like these that I wish we didn't." Lily laughed as she dodged her cousin's purse. "Speaking of guys, how are you and Kurt?" Lily leaned in close to her cousin. Jen only blushed.

"There's nothing going on between me and Kurt. I don't know what you're talking about." Jen brushed her cousin away and ran into the dressing room.

"You can't hide from me forever," Lily shouted into the small room. "You have to come out sometime. Personally, I think it's great. He's a sweet guy. Not to mention he's your favorite color… all blue." Once again, Lily had to dodge Jen's purse as Jen ran out of the dressing room after her cousin. The two girls laughed as they left the store and entered another.

"I don't know. It's weird. Girls just don't make sense." Bobby was sitting outside with Kurt. Obviously they were having a discussion about girls. Bobby wasn't sure what had happened earlier that day. It had confused him. "I like Lily, but I'm not sure she likes me back."

"I don't think that's the problem," Kurt stated. "I think it's quite the opposite."

"What do you mean? If she liked me she wouldn't tell me to stay away."

"How wrong are you. Of course she would. You're dating Rogue, and Rogue is her friend right?"

"Yeah. Rogue is the first friend that Lily made around here, as far as I know," Bobby explained. "They like to hang out a lot, and they get along well." Bobby sighed. "I guess you're right. Knowing Lily, she wouldn't want to destroy her friendship with Rogue."

"Yeah, exactly. Me and Jen on the other hand, there's nothing blocking us." Kurt laughed. "I plan on asking her out soon."

"Good luck. What I hear from Lily, Jen really likes you."

"Oh really?" Kurt stood proud. "What's not to like about the blue guy? Anyway, I should get back. It's getting late. Hurry up with your mission and come on back to the Institute."

"We're trying," Bobby explained. "It's not that easy." Bobby sighed. "There are a lot of complications." Kurt nodded and then vanished. Bobby walked back to the school and turned in for the night.

"So Fire Storm, where do you come from?" Emma sat at her desk, flipping through Lily's fake file.

"Japan."

"Your cousin and friend Voice were also from Japan, right?"

"Freeze was. I'm not sure about Voice. We met when we were young."

"I see." Emma took a sip of her coffee, eyeing Lily suspiciously. Reading her mind, Lily could tell that Emma did not trust her. Lily couldn't help but be amused. Emma shouldn't trust her. She had no reason to. Ever since they came to this school, Lily had avoided Emma and didn't reveal much to her. She kept herself closed off.

From what Lily had learned, every mutant here, with an exception to her team, was all open to Emma. They told her everything. Emma had a way of seducing people, and getting them to do whatever she wanted, but with Lily's team it wasn't possible, with the way that Lily blocked everyone's mind. Emma didn't know that Lily was telepathic. All she knew was that Lily could control fire, but Lily guessed that Emma had a feeling it was all Lily's doing that she couldn't control them. _Good instincts_, Lily decided.

"What made you decide to move here?" Lily thought that Emma was being too nosey. She had no choice but to conjure up a story for her. Lily concentrated and made sure that all of her team could hear the story.

"Well, when I was in Japan, I didn't really have a family, except for my cousin and her mom. I lived by myself for a while, until Voice decided to move in with me. It was actually very comforting to have someone around. A year ago, my cousin's mother got a job offer around here, so they moved here. About two months ago, I got a call from my cousin saying that my aunt had gotten into an accident and didn't survive. I figured my cousin needed some company, so me and Voice moved in with her."

"Okay, makes sense. Then how did you meet the rest of your friends?"

"We lived in the same apartment complex."

Emma nodded. "Alright." She took one last look through Lily's file and then dismissed her. Lily was happy to be leaving.

"I don't trust her." Emma said out loud. From out of a dark corner, a younger boy with silver hair and cold yellow eyes walked out, glaring at the door.

"You have reason not to. She's the one blocked everything. Keep an eye on her. Whatever she plans on doing, she's going to do it soon."

AN: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please leave a review. I need to know how much people like or don't like my story. Ja ne!


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

_I had a feeling that something was about to happen, but I wasn't sure what. After the conversation I held with Emma that day, she's always had someone watching me. If I hadn't known that no one here trusted me before, I definitely knew it now. I had to hurry up and get back to the institute soon._

"So what's the plan?" Jen asked Lily. "We have to hurry up, but everyone seems to be watching us now, especially you." They were all in the girl's room, holding a meeting. Lily had Morion hold up a shield around the room to prevent anyone from listening in on their conversation.

"I think I can help," Amara quietly said. Everyone hushed themselves to listen to the girl. Amara was a little embarrassed to be the speaker, but she would do anything to help her new friends. "The computer that you're looking for is in a locked room. I was here when Emma first started building the place, so I know where tat room is. I can show you today and then tomorrow you can take action. But you will need to keep Emma busy. She's the only one with access to that room."

"That's great Amara." Lily hugged the girl, getting a surprised squeal from her.

"Okay, for tomorrow's plans then," Lily began. "Jen and Kitty will go to the computer room. Jen, I want you to keep both of you invisible. I don't want anyone to see you two go into the room. Kitty, you're needed to help Jen phase through the door. Talya and Bobby, I want the both of you to keep watch, and make sure no one goes near that door. Do anything necessary. Me and Morion will go talk with Emma, and try to keep her away from that room."

Lily watched Bobby and Morion as she explained the plan. Morion smirked at Bobby when he saw the jealous look in his eyes. Lily only shook her head. They were both acting like children lately when it had anything to do with her. She stood from her seat and sent the boys back to their room. Her, Jen and Kitty then left with Amara. Amara showed them where the computer room was. Kitty and Jen then took Amara to her room and Lily made her way to the kitchen.

"Fire Storm, I need to talk to you."

"I knew you'd want to." Lily took a seat ad motioned for Bobby to sit next to her. She took a few cookies and started munching on them. "It's about the mission, right?" Lily noticed the look on Bobby's face. "Don't worry, no one can hear us right now. Everyone's asleep. I did a sweep of the school."

Bobby nodded. "Lily, why does Morion have to go with you? We do everything together."

"You're jealous." Lily bit into another cookie.

"Of course I'm jealous. I like you Lily, you know I do."

"If you must know, Morion has a cold heart to match Emma's. He'll be able to hold a better conversation with her than I will. That's the only reason why Bobby. Trust me, I would rather have you with me than Morion, but there's no choice at this moment. And Tal doesn't like Morion. No one does. It seems that I'm the only one who can really stand to be around him. I'm sorry." Lily finished her cookie and left the kitchen. Bobby ran after her.

"I'm not done talking to you." He grabbed Lily's arm and pushed her against the wall.

"Ow, Bobby, that hurt." But Bobby never let go. He held her right there. Lily struggled to get free, but it was no use. Bobby was too strong for her. "Bobby, please, let me go."

"No. Lily, I'm tired of this. I want to be with you."

"But you're with Rogue." Lily was crying now. She was starting to bruise where Bobby was holding her. "Damn it Bobby, let me go."

"Why do you like Morion? Do you like him more than me?"

"I don't know. Please."

"You do. You do know!"

"I don't," Lily was practically shouting. Why hadn't anyone come running to her rescue yet? "All I know is I like the both of you, but I don't really like one more than the other. Please Bobby, this hurts." But Bobby didn't listen. Instead he leaned down and kissed Lily. She stopped struggling for a moment, but then remembered she couldn't be with him and tried to fight him off.

"I believe the girl said to let her go." Bobby pulled away, and the two looked over at Morion.

Bobby's eyes widened and he looked at Lily. "Oh my God, Lily, I'm sorry." He reached out to her, but Lily automatically pulled away. "Lily, I don't know what came over me."

"I do." Lily wiped her tears. "Bobby, we can't be friends anymore."

Bobby stood there, not really believing what Lily said. "You're kidding right?" Lily shook her head. "But…"

"Bobby, the reason I won't be with you is I don't want to hurt Rogue. I don't want the two of you to split up because of me, and I don't want to ruin my friendship with her. You have to understand this. I can't be with you unless she gives me permission."

Lily felt Morion slip his arm around her. "I'll walk you your room." Lily only nodded and walked away from Bobby. Bobby just stood there cursing at himself, unable to go after Lily. She had a right to hate him.

Morion walked Lily to her door, and she pushed herself away from him. She thanked him without even looking up at him.

"Is that it? A thank you and then you just leave me here standing in the hall?"

"Leave me alone."

"I heard you. You like me."

"But I also like Bobby, okay?" Lily was tired by now and didn't feel like arguing with Morion.

"But there's nothing in the way of us going out."

"Yes there is." She still didn't look at him. She didn't want to be here. She wanted to go lie down in her bed and just go to sleep.

"What?

"Me."

Morion spun her around, forcing her to look up at him. "Tell me you don't want to be with me and I'll leave you alone." But Lily never told him that. She just stared up at him.

"I do want to be with you, but it's not fair to Bobby."

"Don't tell me you still like him after what he did."

There was a long pause before Lily finally said, "I do."

Morion punched his fist against the wall, right next to Lily. She never flinched. "Damn it. What do I have to do to win your heart?"

"Give me time."

The next day Lily and Morion went to go talk with Emma. When they got to Emma's office and pulled her into conversation, Lily sent a message to Jen that it was time. Jen took Kitty's hand and turned them both invisible. Kitty phased them through their dorm door and made their way towards the computer room. Bobby and Tal were already there, standing guard.

Lily held her mind open to everyone. They could send messages back and forth, and they held visions in their head of what was going on for Lily. It was tiring, but Lily concentrated hard, letting Morion do most of the talking with Emma. Visions raced across her mind, words mixing here and there. Even through the confusion, she could still somehow understand everything. She had never done it for so many people before. She was glad that she was sitting down. She attempted to speak with Emma.

"So, Emma, what made you decide to open up a school for mutants?"

"Well, I like teaching, but it's hard to get a job being who I am. So, I decided, there are so many fellow mutants out there who aren't sure about their abilities, and I wanted to help them." Emma looked proud of herself. "What's wrong Fire Storm? You look a little tired."

"No, I'm fine," Lily lied.

"You shouldn't lie to yourself Lily."

Lily's eyes widened. She was caught by surprise, causing her to lose her concentration. Everyone was lost to her. She turned, unable to believe who stood right there in front of her.

"There's nothing here," Jen complained.

"There has to be." Kitty urged Jen into looking some more. "Our connection with Lily has been cut off. We're on our own."

"You're connection may have been cut off," Jen explained, "but no matter what, me and Lily always have a connection with one another. I can feel her, just as she can feel me. Lily's been distracted."

"By what?"

"This person." Jen opened a file.

"Wow, he's pretty."

"Yeah." Jen put the information on a CD. "I found more information." The girls examined it together.

"No way!" Kitty shouted out in surprise. "She means war!" Jen also put this on CD.

"I'm sure the professor will appreciate this information."

"I did some research." Emma threw some papers down on her desk. "You're Lily, a.k.a. Fire Storm. You go to Xavier's Institute, along with all of your little friends. Also, you're a very powerful psychic, as you kindly demonstrated right here in front of me." Lily clenched her fist, and tried not to lash out at Emma. It wouldn't help her at this moment.

"Been a long time Lily."

Lily growled and turned to the silver haired person. "It has been Angel… or should I call you Sin now?"

"Sin is fine. Angel never really suited me." He ran his hand through Lily's hair. She didn't stop him. "You're still as pretty as ever."

"And you're still as cold hearted," Lily snapped back.

"I thought that's what you like about me before."

"You're sick. I thought I told you never to come near me or my cousin again." Lily's anger was building. She tried to calm it down. She knew that's what Sin wanted.

"Lily, what's going on?" Morion asked.

"None of your business." Lily really didn't really feel like talking about her past. This had been something she had wanted to forget.

"What's say we get a better battle space?" Sin asked.

"Take us then," Lily demanded. "I wouldn't mind setting you on fire and watching you burn to death, though it's not possible here. There are too many lives at stake."

Sin nodded and teleported everyone outside. Lily noticed that they were still at the school, just behind it now. This is where the mutants trained everyday. She saw as her friends ran outside towards them. Jen must have led them there. She was happy they all came.

Jen ran up to her cousin and glared at Sin. "Angel, what are you doing here?"

"I came to retrieve my fiancé."

"We're not engaged anymore. Don't you remember? You tricked me and my cousin, and then you attacked our homes. Why would I want to be with you?"

"I know you still love me, somewhere in there." Sin stepped towards Jen, holding out a hand to her. He jumped back when a flame flew between the two of them.

"You stay away from my cousin. She's not your fiancé anymore. Just leave us alone." Lily was burning all around. Everyone stepped away from her. "It's like you have a death wish."

"As long as my death is by one of the two of you, I don't mind dying." Sin smiled, and Lily's flames sparkled a bit.

"White Queen, you fight Lily. I'll fight against Jen. The rest of you can be held back with my spirits." Everyone looked around at each other in confusion, except Lily and Jen. Spirits rose around everyone, binding them where they stood.

Emma stepped up to Lily. "Guess it's you and me." Lily watched as Emma transformed into a diamond hard body. "Don't think you'll be able to beat me."

Lily took her stance and got ready for Emma to make the first move. Emma moved in, her fist headed right for Lily's face. Lily ducked and rolled away from Emma. She couldn't fight her like this. She searched around for some sort of weapon. Not able to find one, Lily sent large flames towards Emma. Emma just let the flames brush against her and laughed maniacally.

"You will never beat me child. You have no chance." She sent a kick towards Lily. Lily couldn't duck, so she tried blocking. She screamed out as a diamond hard form slammed her hands into her chest and sent her flying back into a tree. She spit out blood and forced herself to stand. "You want more? Foolish child."

Meanwhile, where Sin and Jen were, Sin now had beautiful black wings attacked to his back. "I will take you back with me Jen."

"In your dreams." Jen threw an icicle at Sin, but he just flew up, easily dodging it. "Damn it." Jen sent many icicles towards Sin, but he dodged each one of them. Jen cursed at herself and tried to think of what she could do. Sin flew down towards her, and Jen had to jump out of the way.

Lily slammed into her cousin as she dodged Emma. "Jen, we're stuck. There's nothing we can do." Lily held her arm that she had broken fighting Emma. She was even limping now.

Jen turned to her cousin. "Let's try something else."

"Like what?" Lily asked.

Jen tagged her cousin. "We switch enemies." Lily nodded and ran towards Sin. Taking a deep breath, her flame grew again, and she flew fireballs up at Sin. Caught by surprise, one fireball hit one of Sin's wings. He almost fell, but caught his balance. He glared at Lily. Sin had lost his concentration and forgotten all the spirits he had called on to bind the rest of the group.

Jen dodged an attack from Emma, and threw an icicle at her. The icicle just grazed her. Jen figured if enough hit her, Emma could eventually start to feel the pain. Jen built up her energy and surrounded Emma in an ice barrier. Jen leaned back against a tree.

"Nice one Jen," Tal commented.

"Thanks. How's Lily?"

"I don't know." The two girls turned to the battle Lily had with Sin. Morion had gone to help Lily. Since he could fly, he carried her into the air.

Lily hit Sin a little more, being able to keep up with him now. She held on tightly to Morion. "What's the matter? Afraid of heights?"

"Got a problem with that?"

"Seriously? I was only kidding." Morion started laughing.

"Shut up. It's not funny."

"Really? Because to me it is." Sin flew towards them, trying to strike at Lily. Morion threw up a shield to block the attack. "We won't last long."

"We have to get out of her," Lily stated. "It's too dangerous for us." Lily looked down and saw more mutants rushing out to attack her friends. "Morion, down there." Morion brought Lily back down to the ground.

Jen went to try and fight the other mutants, but was stopped when she heard something shatter behind her. She spun around, only to see that Emma had broken free. Before Jen could react, Emma punched her in the stomach. Jen doubled over, spitting up blood. Tal tried to throw Emma back with the wind, but Emma had knocked her unconscious before she could do anything. Bobby tried to freeze Emma again, but Emma grabbed him by the throat and lifted him into the air. He struggled to get free. Amara wanted to go help her new friends, but she was stuck fighting the other mutants, along with Kitty.

Lily was tired of all this chaos. Trying to get rid of the other mutants, she surrounded her teammates in a ring of fire. Everyone else backed away. She went to go and try to fight Emma from off of Bobby. Emma threw her back, and Morion caught her.

"Stand back." Morion pushed Lily to the side and concentrated on Emma. What Emma saw was Bobby going limp. She let out a laugh and threw him to the ground. What Lily saw was Bobby still trying to get free, and suddenly Emma just threw him down. Lily rushed over to help him up. Lily pulled her team together.

"We have to get out of her," Lily explained.

"And how do you suppose we do that?" Morion asked. Emma was now out of the illusion and was now making her way towards Morion. She was furious that he had done such a thing.

Just as Lily was about to give up, Kurt showed up in the middle of their circle. "Nightcrawler," Lily called out to him, all to happy to see him. "Thank goodness you're here." Lily was trying to tend to everyone's wounds. "We need to get them out of here."

"That's what I'm here for." Everyone held hands, Lily holding onto the unconscious Tal. Without another thought they were all back at Xavier's Institute.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

_So we were finally back at Xavier's Institute. It felt like home at the time. I was relieved to be back. At least one of my problems was gone. Now I had to deal with the problem with Morion and Bobby. I just didn't think that Bobby would give up, but I had a feeling Morion wouldn't either._

Everyone was brought to the infirmary to make sure they were all okay. Jen had a few broken ribs, but she would be okay. Bobby just had some minor bruises. Tal had a concussion. Lily had a broken arm and leg. Other than that, everyone was fine.

Lily made her way to the Professor's office, with the help of Amara and Kitty. Lily presented her journal to Xavier and explained the battle as much as she could remember.

"This is Amara, or Magma. She went to White Queen's School for Mutants, but Amara wasn't happy there. She wants to enroll in this Institute."

Xavier examined Amara and smiled. "Welcome Amara. It's a pleasure to meet you and have you join us. I hope you enjoy your stay here." Xavier turned to Lily. "As for you, we have to work on your concentration." Lily looked down, disappointed in herself for not being able to hold up the connection.

"It's not her fault," Kitty cut in. "She's been blocking us from Emma for a couple of weeks now and what she was doing needed a lot of concentration. She had already drained her energy before then. How was she supposed to hold it up? She was distracted. She never expected what came. It's too much for one person."

"No," Lily stopped her. "He's right. I should have been able to handle that. It was my fault. When I went on this mission I had many doubts. Those doubts and fears became real. I wasted my energy being afraid. If I had more confidence in myself it would have been okay." Lily looked at Xavier. "Help me to improve my concentration Professor. I'll do whatever if takes."

Xavier smiled and nodded. "Your training will begin tomorrow."

"Thank you Professor." Lily then dismissed herself and left Xavier's office. Leaving, she ran into Rogue. "Rogue, I'm so happy to see you."

"I see you're all back." Rogue smiled. "It's been a little lonely here without all of you. You look like you were in a battle."

"We were." Rogue's eyes widened in fear. "Don't worry. Everyone made it out okay thanks to Kurt." Lily made her way to her room. "Rogue, while me and Bobby were gone together you were afraid, weren't you?"

"How did you…?"

"Sorry. I didn't mean to intrude. It's just your thoughts just now were very loud. I'm so exhausted I can't control what I hear and don't hear. It's too much effort to block it all out."

"Lily… I…"

"Don't worry about it." Lily stopped in front of her door and looked over at Rogue. "I don't blame you Rogue. I decided I can't be friends with Bobby any longer."

"What?"

"It's too hard for me."

"I don't understand."

"Rogue, you had reason to worry. I like Bobby, more than just a friend, but I would never try to destroy our friendship. I just want you to know that whatever I feel for Bobby doesn't matter." Lily tried to force a smile. "You're more important to me than he will ever be."

"Lily…"

Lily's door opened, Jen stepping out. "Oh." Lily went inside, not able to say anything more to Rogue. "Did I miss something?" Jen asked Rogue as the door shut behind her.

"She likes Bobby…"

"Oh Rogue, she actually told you that?"

Rogue nodded. "I knew she did, but I never expected her to tell me herself."

"That's Lily for you. She cares a lot about you Rogue. She doesn't want to hurt you." Jen remembered the CD in her hand. "Anyway, I have to get to Professor Xavier right now. I'll see you later." Jen waved as she ran off. When she reached Xavier's office, the door opened on it's own. She walked inside.

"Hello Jen. I trust you have something useful for me."

"Yes Professor. I do." Jen handed him the CD. "This explains the person we fought and White Queen's plans. White Queen is building an army. She sends her mutants out to certain places and they destroy the people there. She even records on mutants who don't know what they are yet. She's going to use Angel to trick others into following her." Jen stood there, just staring at the professor for a moment. She expected him to say something, but he never said anything. "We have to do something Professor. She's manipulating mutants into hating humans. She even had Amara there and forced her to kill a few times. Amara never said anything, but it's on record and Lily read it on her mind."

"We will do something Jen. Just give it time. We can't rush into things." Jen nodded, understanding. Xavier dismissed her and she left for her room.

"Jen!" Jen was knocked to the ground as Sakura glomped her. "You're back. Guess who's here!"

"Who?" Jen stood and dusted herself, then looked up and jumped back. "Micki!" Jen hugged her friend. "What are you doing here?"

"I need to talk to everyone. Are Lily and Tal around?"

"I'm here." The girls turned to face Tal. "Lily's in her room though. I just visited her." Tal was holding an ice pack on her head. "How are you Jen?"

"I have bandages all over my chest and stomach. They aren't very comfortable."

"I can only imagine. I can't believe that White Queen has a diamond hard body." Tal looked over at Micki. "We so needed you there."

"I don't doubt it." Micki looked at her two friends. They looked pretty beat up. It might have been avoided if she had been there. "We should go get Lily. I need to talk to everyone." Everyone nodded and went over to Lily's room. Jen opened the door and allowed everyone in.

"Micki?" Lily was sitting at her desk, attempting to write, not really succeeding. "What are you doing here?"

"What why I want to talk to everyone." Micki took a seat on Lily's bed, everyone else sitting down as well. Jen passed out sodas and gave her cousin a bottle of water.

"If it's about the planets we should invite Mara," Lily explained.

"Mara is that pink haired girl, right?" Micki asked. Lily nodded. "Very well then."

"I'll go get her," Sakura offered. She ran out of the room. Maybe ten minutes later she was back, Mara in tow. The two girls took a seat.

"Alright, so then is everyone here now?"

"You forgot me." The six girls looked to the door at Kat. "I'm from the planets as well."

"I see you got the message." Lily smiled and motioned for Kat to sit down.

"How could I not? I was in the middle of a good book and then suddenly your thoughts come bursting through my head," Kat complained as she sat in the chair right next to Lily. "It was very disturbing. I couldn't concentrate on my book after that." Lily only laughed and apologized.

"Can we start now?" Micki asked. All the girls nodded. "Good." And so her explanation began. "I was sent here by Queen Makoto of Jupiter. All the planets had gathered together. They already know that you're here."

"We don't have to go home do we?" Jen asked.

"Of course we do," Sakura answered. "We were never supposed to be here to begin with. This place is forbidden."

"No," Lily interrupted. "They have a mission for us. Micki, what's going on?"

"People from the other planets have come to Earth, but not just anybody. They're our enemies. They want to destroy the universe, starting with Earth."

"That would explain why Angel was here," Lily said more to herself than anyone else in the room. She looked over at her cousin, and noticed that Jen had a dark look in her eyes. Lily wanted to kill Angel for all that he had done.

"You saw Angel?" Micki looked over at Jen as well. "Is that who you all fought against?" Lily nodded. "I see."

"So, am I gonna get to kill my cousin?" Kat asked.

"If someone else doesn't kill him first," Sakura answered, glancing at both Lily and Jen. She knew their past with Angel. Kat shrugged and picked up a book off of Lily's desk, reading it. Lily handed her the other two books to the series, knowing that Kat would just borrow the whole thing. Kat took the books and tucked them into her bag, then continued reading the book that she had picked up.

"So what do they want us to do about the other people?" Tal asked, finally joining in on the conversation.

"We have to stop them somehow and maybe find a way to send them back to their rightful planets where they will then be tried and maybe put to death if we don't kill them first," Micki explained. "We have to stop them any way possible."

"Understood." Lily sighed. "I never thought that anyone else could really find their way here. The portals are blocked, and only those with keys can get through. There are very few that aren't royalty or have a military family that have keys. So then how?"

"They're finding a way somehow."

"My guess is my cousin has a little to do with it," Kat suggested, still reading her book. "Unfortunately, he's royalty, but not just that, his father is part of the Saturn military. He would definitely have a key or a way to travel around. He has a thing for destroying everything, so I wouldn't be surprised if he helped some people."

The girls all agreed, but also agreed that there were more people behind this as well. They wondered just how many of them they would know. As royalty, you knew a lot of people.

"Wait!" Lily shouted, causing all the girls to jump up and stare at her. "Mara!" Everyone looked at Mara.

"What did Mara do?" she asked, pointing to herself.

"I'm a Princess of Mars. Jen's a Princess of Mercury. Kat is a Princess of Saturn. Sakura is the Princess of the Moon. Royalty all have portal keys. Then there's Tal, whose father is a general for my father, so that gives her access to a portal key as well. Then there's Micki who's an elf. They're warriors, so they've always had keys to the portals. The only one without reason to a key is you. Mara, how did you get on Earth?"

"Mara's not sure," Mara said matter of fact. "Mara heard someone talking saying that they were going to Earth. Mara saw them enter a portal so she followed them in. When Mara got out they were no where to be seen."

Lily nodded, deep in thought. "Okay, so you followed someone. Do you remember what they looked like?"

Mara shook her head. "They were wearing cloaks."

"Hmm. That's too bad." Lily sighed. "Let's all get some sleep. I'm sure some of us here are tired, and just want to get some rest. Plus it's great to be back here. I don't quite want to think about any war or whatever, so let's discuss all this tomorrow." The girls all agreed and set up a meeting place and time for the next day.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

_Gee, life on Earth was just getting so much better. Well, now I knew that my parents wouldn't kill me for running away here. No, instead they order me to stop a war between Earth and the other planets. How was I to do that? It's bad enough that there was going to be a war between the mutants. Now my people have joined as well, but not my side. Nope, they chose the bad side. Why am I not surprised? Well, maybe concentrating on this war will help my mind wander away from two certain boys… Hopefully._

If they weren't worried before, these girls sure were worried now. There was a war coming, and they had to fight against their own people. They had all met together in Micki's room today. No one wanted to discuss a war, but they didn't really have a choice. This wasn't something that they could just postpone.

"Micki, do you have this room all to yourself?" Mara asked, looking around. Micki nodded. "That's so cool. Mara has to share her room, but she likes her roommate."

"Who do you share your room with?" Lily asked.

"Rahne."

"Oh, Wolf Bane." Lily smiled. "She's a very nice girl." Mara nodded.

"Okay, maybe we should cut the chitchat and start discussing the war," Kat interrupted.

"Thank you Kat." Micki passed the note around to all the girls. "This is the message we got from the Royal Court." When the note came around to Lily she just read it out loud.

**Dear Children,**

**It has come to our attention that people from the planets are escaping to Earth. We have learned that Lilyanna of Mars, Jennifer of Mercury, Kathryn of Saturn, Sakura of the Moon, and Talya, daughter of General Moon, are on Earth. We would appreciate if you do us a favor before you all return home and stop these people from destroying what isn't already destroyed on this once beautiful planet Earth. We trust you can handle things. Thank you.**

**Sincerely,**

**The Royal Court**

"So they want us to fight a war for them," Jen said. "Why should we? Why can't they fight it?"

"Micki, when you left, what was going on?" Lily demanded to know. Jen had a good point. Normally they would never ask them to fight such a war for them. There had to be a reason.

"They were at war," Micki answered truthfully. "Whoever is behind this mess, leading our people to Earth to destroy everything, they're also leading a war between the planets. They've already gained control of Pluto. I think just as I was leaving they gained control of Saturn."

"So it's not just Earth that's having problems. It's the whole universe." Lily contemplated their situation. "So while they handle the bigger war, they leave us for the smaller one."

"What do you mean?" Mara asked.

"Well, think… they have to fight for eight different planets while all we have to do is defend Earth. It's not really fair if you think about it, and the only reason they asked us to do it is because we're already here. If we were still at home where we're supposed to be, they would never have put us in such danger."

The girls looked around at each other. Lily had a point. Their parents had always been really protective about what kind of danger they put their kids in. This was the biggest danger of all.

"If they were here now, they would try to handle it themselves," Tal commented. Lily nodded. "They're actually putting the fate of Earth in our hands." Tal sounded amazed at this thought. "I never really thought they'd ever do such a thing. We have to try our best. We can't disappoint them."

"Well said Tal," Jen complimented her. "And I agree. So we're going to do all we can to stop this war and make things right again. We're going to make our parents even more proud of us than they already are."

"How can we tell if someone is from another planet?" Mara asked.

Lily tapped her head. "I have the ability to read minds and sense people. I will know if they're from another planet or not."

"But that means your mind will always have to be open," Jen explained. "You're still recovering from White Queen's School for Mutants. How do you expect to handle finding people from other planets?"

"That's what I'm training for. I'm going to build my ability to read minds and learn to concentrate better. Won't fail Jen. Just trust in me, okay?" Lily begged her cousin.

Jen sighed and nodded. "I trust you. I'm just worried is all."

"That's understandable." Lily smiled and hugged her cousin. "As we all should be. We all know what we're up against. We're talking about people even our parents had trouble dealing with. We're going to give it everything we've got to end this."

"You ready?" Jean asked Lily. Lily needed and sat as if in meditation. It had been awhile since she had done this. She used to visit her temple every morning and just meditate for a couple of hours. It was a good way of cleansing her head.

"So why are you the one training me, Professor Grey?" Lily asked. It's not that she didn't like Jean… okay, maybe it was. She preferred Xavier, but you don't always get what you want. Jean just annoyed her in a many ways, not to mention a big minus was that Jean was dating Scott. Lily hated Scott. He acted all high and mighty, and disregarded other people's feelings or thoughts.

"Xavier as other problems to deal with, and I've been in the same position you're in now. I understand more than you may think I do."

_Great_, Lily thought to herself. _Now the not so popular professor thinks that she understands me. Just want I need._ Lily sat up straight and cleared her mind. At least in that way she didn't have to worry about Jean.

"Lily, I have a question."

Lily looked up at Jean. "As away Professor Grey."

"Why can't I read your mind? Even Xavier can't. You have nothing blocking it."

Lily shrugged. "Don't know. Maybe my powers are stronger than yours." Lily smirked, watching that doubtful look cross Jean's face. "Just kidding. Maybe you're not meant to read my mind, nor anyone else for that matter."

Jean thought for a moment. "I guess you're right."

"I'm sorry Rogue, did you say something?" Bobby looked over at his girlfriend.

"That's it Bobby, I'm tired of you ignoring me. You were thinking of Lily again, weren't you?"

"No!" Bobby tried to calm Rogue down. "Trust me, I wasn't. I swear."

Rogue examined her boyfriend. "You're lying to me. You're always thinking about Lily, so what's the difference now?"

"The difference is I chose to stay with you Rogue, okay? Yes, I liked Lily, but that's over. She means nothing to me." Bobby took her hands in his own. "I'm much happier being here with you. Trust me."

Rogue sighed and buried herself into Bobby's embrace. She wasn't sure how much of what he said was true, but he did ask her to trust him, so that's what she would do. Unbeknownst to the couple, they had a shadow lurking just around the corner.

Lily stood there. She had heard and seen everything. She took a deep breath, fighting back the tears. "What did you expect Lily? Of course he didn't really care for you like you cared for him," she tried to tell herself. "I'm such an idiot." She started her way back to her room, but was stopped by Morion. She scowled and pushed her way around him.

"Lily, will you stop avoiding me?" Morion grabbed her good arm and threw her against the wall. She let out a small squeal of pain.

"Morion, stop! Both you and Bobby. You're both crazy!" she shouted.

"And it's all your fault."

"My fault? How is it my fault?" She tried to fight him off. "I hate you both!"

"No you don't. You wish you did. It would make things a lot easier, huh?"

"I do hate you!"

"Stop pretending." He let her go and stood there, eyes glowing with anger. "You can say you hate us all you want, but really you're afraid to be with one of us. I don't know what your past is with guys, but get over it. Stuff happens. I don't know what it is about you, but I'm drawn to you Lily."

"No! You don't care about anyone. Everyone here says it."

"What do they know? Just as I don't care for them, they don't care for me. They don't hate me because I don't acknowledge them. They hate me because they're scared of me. They've been scared since the first day I walked through those doors, but you weren't."

"I might not have been scared of you then," Lily shouted, "but I am now. I'm scared of both you and Bobby. You both keep throwing me around like I'm some sort of object. Well, I'm not. I'm a person, and I have feelings as well. Both of you, just stop attacking me. Leave me alone. I want nothing to do with either of you. You hear that Bobby?"

Bobby just stood there watching Lily, pain all too noticeable in his eyes. He had heard the shouting in the other room and came to investigate what was going on. Rogue stood right next to him.

"I don't love anyone. I don't even have an interest in being with anyone. I enjoy being alone. Love is pathetic. It just gets in the way and clouds your mind of your surroundings. I don't ever want to love, ever again." Lily then covered her mouth, realizing what she just said. She turned and made her way to room as quick as possible under her condition.

Tal sat outside, watching the leaves fall from the trees. She pulled her jacket tight around her and walked over to the gate. She leaned against it, staring out at nothing. When they left White Queen's School, Tal had also left Gambit behind. She was a little lonely now. She wanted to see him again, but after that battle, he would probably never want to talk to her ever again. _Stupid, you should have known better than to let yourself fall in love with the enemy_, she scolded herself. _What did you think? That he was just going to convert himself to help humans rather than destroy them all for the sake of love? This isn't some fairy tale._

"Thinking about him again?" Kitty snuck up behind Tal, causing her to jump and bang her head against the gate. She cursed, being as her head had still hurt from being knocked unconscious the other day. "I'm sorry. Didn't really mean to scare you."

"Hey Kitty." Tal gently rubbed her head.

"Let's go to the club tonight."

"What?" Tal was too busy with the pain to understand what Kitty was doing.

"The club. Let's go."

"No, not tonight. I think I just want to lay down for awhile and maybe get some sleep. Because of my concussion, I wasn't allowed to sleep last night."

"But…"

"I'm tired."

"If you go, he might be there. I'm just saying, you want to see him right?" Kitty said quickly, tired of Tal interrupting her. "He's usually there, right?"

"Oh." Tal seemed to perk up a bit. "You're right." Then she seemed depressed again. "What if he doesn't want to see me? What if I try to talk to him and he just completely brushes me off?"

"You'll never know if you don't try." Kitty nudged her friend a bit with her elbow and winked. Tal just smiled and nodded.

"Alright. We're going to the club tonight."

"Yay!" Kitty cheered.

Tal just laughed. "Are you sure you didn't just use Gambit as an excuse to have fun?"

Kitty backed away laughing. Tal chased her up to their room. Kitty was just happy that she could get her friend to stop sulking, even if it was for just a little while.

Later that night both girls entered the club. Guys turned in their direction, some even asking them to dance, but the two girls just brushed them all off and entered the dance floor together, swaying against each other. Tal's gaze searched the club, hoping to find Gambit, but she never did. She figured he might show up later. But as the night went on, there was no sign of him. Eventually she gave up and the two girls just went home. Tal knew he wouldn't show up, but she just wanted to make sure. She didn't want to miss a chance to see him. The two girls walked home in silence.

Gambit looked down at his new mission. He looked up at White Queen. "But these are…"

"The new students. I want you to terminate them. Gambit, you're my best student. I trust you'll get the job done."

Gambit took one last look down at the picture he held in his hand, his gaze focusing on Tal. She was his enemy. He had fallen in love with the enemy. He nodded, not really wanting to. "It'll get done." He walked out of the room. He then crumpled up the picture, kinetically charging it in the process. He threw it into a trash bin, and then the picture blew up.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

_I can't believe I had told them that I had been in love before. Now they knew it was a problem from my past. I concentrated on the war that was to come and my training. Between that and studying, I really didn't have time to think about them. I didn't know when this war would come so I made sure to be prepared. I had to admit, I was scared. I didn't want to fight this war, but I had to try. I had to do my best because my parents trusted me, just as I trusted them._

Micki sat outside, meditating under a tree. Mara hung above her, communicating with the trees and grass. Micki guessed that she could control the Earth, which meant that she was definitely from Jupiter. Micki awoke from her meditation and watched Mara. She was an interesting child.

"Blue sky high above," Mara sang to herself. "You're so pretty." Micki raised an eyebrow at the odd child. Mara only shrugged and continued singing. "Mara's a monkey! Whee!" Mara swung back and forth on a branch. "This makes Mara so happy! Mara is a free person."

"And odd," Micki added.

"No," Jen said, walking up to them. "Random. Isn't that right Mara?"

Mara nodded. "You're right Jen. Someone understands Mara."

"I have enough random friends to understand you," Jen explained. Mara only laughed. "Has anyone seen Lily? She woke up early this morning, so I never got a chance to see her before she left. I'm worried about her. She really hasn't been talking much to anybody lately, and Rogue told me that Lily won't be friends with Bobby anymore."

"Really?" Micki stood and walked with Jen to a bench. "What's the deal with those two anyway?"

"Lily likes Bobby."

"Really? I never thought that Lily would allow herself to like anyone after what happened to… well you know."

Jen nodded, understanding what Micki was saying. "I have a right to kill Angel, but I think Lily's got rights over me."

"Jen…"

"Yes, Angel hurt me, but I think he hurt my cousin more. He really scarred her." Jen sat down on a bench, Micki sitting down right next to her. "Lily really kept to herself after that. She almost died. The doctor honestly thought that she wouldn't make it."

"I don't know what happened," Micki started, "but I'm just glad that she's okay."

"That's where you're wrong."

"Huh?" Micki looked at Jen, quite confused. Lily seemed alright. She had gone from an emotionless person, to one of the most caring, so why would Jen say that she was wrong?

"She just acts alright. It's like she's forcing herself. She's been forcing herself since almost two years ago. I never thought that she'd like a guy ever again, let alone two guys."

"Two?" Now Micki was interested. "Who else?"

"Morion."

"Him?" Jen nodded. "But it doesn't seem like we can trust him."

"But Lily does," Jen explained.

"I don't see why."

"I don't either, but I won't argue with her about it." Jen stood. "Anyway, I'm going to go continue looking for her."

"Good luck. Hey Jen…" Jen stopped and looked at Micki. "Don't worry about her too much. I know it doesn't look like it, but Lily can really take care of herself you know. After that incident, I don't think anything can destroy her as much as that did." Jen nodded, wanting to believe Micki, and ran off.

"No sir." Morion was on the phone with someone. He looked around, making sure that no one could hear him, or that anyone suspected anything yet. "Yes. Everything is under control." He was quiet for a moment, listening to the person on the other line. "Alright, I can handle it. Bye." Morion set the phone down and turned to face Lily. It had been a little over a month since they had returned to the institute so Lily was moving around freely now. She still had to watch what she did, but she figured she was perfectly fine.

"Handle what?"

"Oh, nothing particular."

"Who was that?" Lily asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Um, family."

"Oh." Lily looked a little surprised and ashamed of herself. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" Lily shrugged. "What to take a walk with me?"

"Sure."

"Lily!" Lily spun around to see her cousin run up to her. "Are you headed out?" Jen asked. Lily nodded. "Oh. I've been looking all over for you. I was worried if you're alright."

"Worried?" Lily laughed. "I'm alright. You don't need to worry about me."

"Lily, I heard you last night. You had that dream again, didn't you?"

Lily's eyes widened. "Look, I told Morion I'd walk with him. I'll talk with you later, okay?"

"But Lily…"

"Bye," Lily cut her cousin off and linked her arm through Morion's, pulling him down the hall and outside. When they turned the corner around the gate, Lily slowed down, staring down at the ground. She stopped when she felt Morion tug on her arm.

"Hey." Morion looked down at her. "You shouldn't just run away from your cousin when she's talking to you."

"I didn't want to talk about it." Lily looked away from him, let go of his arm and started walking away. Morion sped up and walked right beside her. "It's the past. It doesn't matter anymore."

"Your past creates your future."

"What?" Lily stopped and looked at Morion like he was crazy. "What do you mean?"

"Without your past you wouldn't be who you are today. Some of these things might never be happening. You might never have come here. I might never have met you or you might never have spoken to me."

"Okay, okay, I get the point." Lily brushed him off and ran up to a snack machine. Putting change in it, she bought herself a bag of cookies and continued walking.

"You like to avoid people," Morion stated.

"Point?"

Morion shrugged. "Just saying. You can't avoid anyone forever you know."

"I can try." Lily opened her bag and pulled out a cookie, munching on it slowly. "I might not be able to avoid them forever but at the moment I can, and I will avoid things for as long as possible." Lily walked around a corner and stopped when she spotted Angel. Angel smiled and walked up to her.

"Hello Lily. Nice day for a walk, don't you agree?"

Lily only glared and backed away from him. "Leave me alone Angel. Just stay away from me and my cousin."

"I don't think it's your cousin that you're trying to protect." Angel smirked, and he called up on a spirit, but not just any spirit. It was a spirit from Lily's past. Lily dropped her bag of cookies and reached out.

"Oh…" Just as her hand brushed through it, the spirit disappeared.

"You miss him, don't you?"

Lily fell to her knees, tears falling down her cheeks. She hadn't cried him in a little over a year. She tried not to think of what happened, but Angel always found a way to make that impossible. Slowly she forced herself to stand.

"Damn you Angel. You just can't leave me alone. Bad enough it was your fault it happened, now you won't let me forget it." She lashed out at him, but Angel only jumped back, laughing at her attempt. Lily tried to kick him, and Angel just barely blocked it. He stumbled back, forgetting her strength when she was angry. Those years ago she had almost killed him because of what he did. He was lucky to even be alive. Lily kicked his feet out from under him and he went crashing to the ground. Before he could get back up, Lily placed her foot against his throat.

"I won't kill you. It's beneath me to just kill people. It's too far back to be my reason, but give me a reason, a good reason, and I will kill you, no questions asked." Lily stepped away from Angel and walked away, Morion following close behind.

Lily stretched, smiling up at the sky. "I feel much better now. All that irritation has left me." Morion didn't say anything. He was afraid that he'd say something to make her lash out at him as she had with Angel. They walked back to the institute, Lily humming the whole way. Did she really feel better or was she hiding something?

When they got back, Lily left Morion at the gate and ran to go find her cousin, or someone that knew her past that she could talk to. She just needed someone. She ran up the stairs and into her room, finding her cousin at the desk.

"Lily?" Jen automatically stood and ran to her cousin. Lily collapsed into her cousin's embrace and started crying.

"I saw him."

"Saw who?"

"Angel summoned his spirit."

"Wait, you ran into Angel? Are you okay? You're not hurt are you?" Jen asked, worried her cousin was hurt right after finally healing from her previous wounds.

"I'm fine. I fought Angel but I beat him. I was so angry, I wasn't going to lose to him." Lily pushed away from her cousin and wiped her eyes.

"Whose spirit did he summon?"

Lily looked at her cousin, unsure if she really wanted to say. Jen sensed this and searched her cousin's feelings and let out a small gasp. Jen then embraced her cousin once more and joined her in crying.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

_As if I wasn't having problems with the dreams before, now I had them every night. This is why I couldn't be with either Bobby or Morion. I just couldn't allow it. I liked them both, I really did, but this is just the way it had to be. Plus, it was so much simpler this way. I didn't have to worry about choosing between the two of them, or hurting one for the other. I hated making decisions._

_As for the upcoming war, we still didn't know much more about it and the only outer Earth person we knew of was Angel. I was still searching and with my training, my abilities have improved quite a bit. I wasn't about to give up._

"So, Bobby hasn't been paying much attention to you?" Colossus asked Rogue. "That's rough."

Rogue nodded, walking to class with Colossus. She had been quite lonely lately, and though Lily decided to stop being friends with Bobby, that didn't prevent him from still liking her. Rogue understood what Lily was doing, but was this really right?

"Rogue?"

Rogue snapped out of her thoughts and looked up at Colossus. She smiled and walked into class. She had to stop thinking about Bobby. Right now was not the time. She sat down at her desk and tried to concentrate on the lesson. When Professor McCoy said that they could pair up with their partners Rogue walked over to her lab table, Colossus right behind her.

"Rogue, are you okay? You seem a little out of it today," Colossus explained.

"I'm fine." Rogue put on her goggles and started mixing chemicals.

"Is it Bobby still?"

Rogue sighed and nodded. "I can't seem to get my mind off it. We started out so well."

"It's because that Lily girl arrived."

"No." For a moment Rogue stopped mixing chemicals. She wanted to blame Lily, but she knew it wasn't her fault. Lily was trying all she could do to help Rogue with Bobby.

"What do you mean 'no'? The problem started when she came right?"

"No." Rogue shook her head. "It started before Lily came, we just kept our problems to ourselves. We were distant when we started out, but it got worse as we remained together. We were more open just as friends." Rogue looked down at their experiment, avoiding letting Colossus see how sad she really was. "The only reason we remained together is we were hoping that eventually we could work it out. I should have known better."

"That's not true. I'm sure the two of you can work things out." Colossus said, taking her hand to reassure her

"Thank you Colossus." Rogue smiled. "You're probably right. I'm sure we just need more time." She nodded, continuing with her experiment.

"Um… Rogue?" Colossus said, reaching out to her. "Maybe you shouldn't…"

"Hm?" Rogue looked over at him, but it was too late. There was a loud boom and Rogue jumped back. "Uh oh." Rogue sighed. "Guess that means I get an F." Colossus just laughed at her.

"Here!" Kitty tossed a bag of cookies to Amara and Lily, who were sitting on Tal's bed. Lily smiled, digging into the bag. Amara only laughed and helped herself to some as well. Kitty sat on the floor right next to her two friends. "Where's Tal?"

"She said she'd be late," Lily responded.

"Oh, okay." Kitty grabbed some cookies from the bag and Amara started their movie. Today they were spending time in Kitty's and Tal's room having a movie day. Really, Kitty had suggested movie day because she had wanted to cheer Lily up. Lily had been wandering around in a daze lately, and she always had this sad look on her face. Everyone was worried about her, so they decided to get her mind off of whatever was bothering her.

"So what movie are we watching?" Lily asked.

"Inuyasha," Amara answered.

"Really? Which one?" Lily asked, a bit more upbeat.

"The second one," Kitty responded.

"Oh, that's the best one," Lily explained. "I love when they kiss." The three girls laughed, enjoying their movie while stuffing themselves with cookies.

"Sorry I'm late!" Tal burst into the room out of breath. Lily almost dropped the bag of cookies. She held her hand to her heart. Tal looked at the three girls, their faces covered in terror and shock, and she started laughing so hard she fell onto her bed. "Sorry. Sorry. Didn't mean to scare everyone."

"Sure." Lily grabbed a cookie and threw it into her mouth. "Like I really believe you." Tal just laughed and leaned back against the wall. Lily threw a cookie at Tal, but Tal just caught it and ate it.

"Yummy!" She reached for the bag, pulling out a handful of cookies. "So what mo… Oh! Inuyasha! Is Sesshoumaru in this one?"

"Nope! Mwahaha." Lily stuck her tongue out at Tal. "Too bad for you, huh?" Tal took one of her cookies and threw it at Lily. Lily just ate it, still laughing at Tal.

"You're so mean," Tal pouted.

"Thank you."

"You both are weird," Kitty said laughing at the two of them.

"Hey, you're all missing the movie," Amara lectured. "Movie day, not throw cookies at each other day." As she said this, she took some cookies and threw them at everyone. Next thing she knew, cookies were being thrown at her. Their laughter was so loud that they almost missed the knock on their door.

"Who is it?" Kitty shouted.

"Delivery," they heard a muffled voice shout through the door. The four girls looked at each other. Tal got up and went to answer the door. Before she could open it all the way, Sakura pushed the door open and tackled Tal to the ground. "Surprise!"

"Ack!" Tal hit the ground hard, Sakura on top of her. "That… really… hurt."

"Heh, sorry." Sakura got up and helped Tal up. Jubilee walked into the room behind her.

"Sakura… Jubilee… Why are the two of you here? Don't you have mischief to manage?" Lily asked. Sakura shrugged and took a seat next to Lily, handing her the chips. Jubilee set down a box of sodas and sat down on the floor next to Kitty. Tal resumed her seat on her bed.

"Wow, looks crowded in here." Jen walked in, bringing Rogue in behind her. Jen held up a carton of ice cream. "You can never have enough snacks." Jen took a spoon from Rogue, and the two girls found places to sit on Tal's bed. They could have just sat on Kitty's bed, but that would separate them from everyone else and the snacks. Jen dug into her ice cream.

Lily just smiled. She knew they were all here to cheer her up, and she appreciated it. She loved them even more for it. "Thank you everyone." They just smiled back at her. As long as she was smiling, they were all happy. Rogue pulled Lily back against her and hugged her tightly. Lily laid her hands on Rogue's arms, and just stayed like that for the rest of the movie. She was comfortable, and was able to relax for the first time in a while.

"Where are all the girls?" Colossus asked Bobby.

"I heard they were having a movie day over in Tal's and Kitty's room today," Kurt answered for him.

"Just all the girls? That's not fair!" Colossus complained.

"They're trying to cheer Lily up. She's been depressed for a while now," Bobby explained.

"Hey, I heard that Lily wasn't talking to you anymore."

"Yeah." Bobby looked down sadly and Kurt hit Colossus.

"Nice going," Kurt lectured.

"It's okay Kurt. It's true, and Lily has reason not to talk to me anyway." Bobby forced a smile.

"Hey, what are you guys up to?" Lance walked up to Bobby. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, you looking for Sakura?"

Lance shook his head. "Nah. I know that she's having a movie day. She made me buy chips and soda for their little party." Lance laughed and sat down on the couch. "Lucky them."

"So then what do you want?" Colossus asked.

Lance blinked and looked up at Colossus. "Geez, I've been gone for a while on a mission, and I just get back today and this is how you treat me?" Lance shrugged. "I feel the love. At least Sakura welcomed me home."

Kurt laughed. "Yeah, but then she asked you to buy her stuff and ditched you to go watch movies."

"She explained it was for a friend. They're doing a cheer up session."

"Hm, so even you knew before me and you just got here," Colossus complained. "Doesn't anyone like me enough to tell me anything?"

Kurt shrugged. "Probably not." Bobby just laughed.

That night Lily slept better than she had in awhile. Her friends had really been there for her. Everyday they stuck with her, and made sure to have her smiling somehow. She was actually surprised that they hadn't given up on her yet. Even back then, her friends stayed by her side, though she had no reaction to anything. She wasn't sure where she would be without her friends.

Rogue sat up, talking with Jen. She decided to sleep in their room tonight because she wasn't sure how much longer she could stand Tabitha. The girls were working on getting a room together, the three of them, but it was taking a while. Xavier said it would take some time, but they wanted the room soon. Rogue spent most of her time here with Lily and Jen anyway, so they might as well.

"She's usually mumbling in her sleep," Rogue pointed out. Jen nodded. "What happened Jen? I have a feeling you know." Rogue looked up at her friend.

Jen just stared at her cousin, and responded with, "I know nothing."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

_Everyone seems worried about me. I feel bad worrying them, but I just can't get what happened out of my mind. Memories that I tried so hard to forget just came flooding back, and I'm trying to fight them away. It destroyed me. I never really forgot them, but I was at least able to get past them and push them to the back of my mind. Now here they were, shoving their way out again._

"So this is your boyfriend?" Lily shook hands with Lance. "Nice to meet you. I'm Lily."

"Ah, so you're the girl that Sakura talked about."

"She talked about me, huh? What kind of things did she say? Were they evil?" Lily smirked, glancing in Sakura's direction. Sakura laughed.

"What evil things could I say about you? That's Tal's job." Lily laughed as well.

"That it is." Lily picked up a small pack of paper. "Anyway, I have to meet up with Professor Grey for my training." She waved and ran off. Sakura just shrugged and turned her gaze to her boyfriend.

"So, I haven't really given you the proper welcome home." She grinned and took Lance's arm. "Did I tell you how much I missed you?"

"Possible, but I don't quite remember." He grinned down at Sakura as the two of them walked out of the institute.

Sakura laughed and said, "Well, I missed you. A lot."

"Good." He pulled her to the side and handed her a small box. "I got this for you." Sakura examined the small box in her hand.

"What is it?"

"Open it silly."

Slowly Sakura opened the small box. Inside was a beautiful gold locket. Inside the locket were two small pictures. One of her and one of Lance. She smiled. Lance took the locket and placed it around her neck.

"Thank you."

He smiled and leaned forward, kissing her gently. Sakura loved his kisses. Nothing else mattered when she was with Lance.

Amara was walking around town with Mara. The two girls had just wanted some time away from the institute. They had enough of the studying and training. So what if a war was coming? Everyone was tired. They just wanted to be left alone. Mara sat at a table right outside of a café. Amara took a seat next to her. They both ordered hot chocolate.

"Mara, do you think there's really going to be a war?"

"Mara doesn't know, nor does she care." Mara sipped at her hot chocolate. "If there's a war, then there's a war. Mara wants nothing to do with it." Mara knew the others wanted her to help, but what could she possibly do? Mara knew nothing about war. She wasn't like the others. They were either royalty or warriors. Mara was a scavenger. She stole for a living, living her and there. All that stuff about portals, she had actually just learned recently. Mara wasn't ready to risk her life for everyone else.

"So what are a couple of beauties doing out here by yourself?" John sat down across from the two girls.

Mara smiled. "And who are you?"

"John."

"Nice to meet you, John. I'm Mara, and this is Amara."

"So, do the two of you want to head to the club with me?"

Amara stood from her seat and smiled at John. "Sounds fun, but count me out. I have other things to take care of. Thanks though. Mara, you should go with him."

"I will." Mara gave a flirtatious grin and John stood, putting his hand out for Mara. Mara simply took it, puling herself up. She said bye to Amara and then left with John. Amara just shrugged and walked off.

Jen lay, staring up at the sky. She closed her eyes for a moment, and when she reopened them, Kurt was crouched over staring down at her. Jen blinked and then smiled. "Well, hello blue dude." He moved away and she sat up. "What brings you over here?"

"Thought that you would like some company." He stood, pulling her with him. "It must be lonely out here by yourself."

Jen shrugged. "I actually don't mind it, though company such as you is always welcome." She hooked her arm through his and they walked inside. Jen fell back against the couch and Kurt sat with her. "Hey Kurt, the fair is in for the week."

"And?"

"Would you mind going with me?" She looked up at him, eyes pleading with him to go.

"You want a blue escort to the fair?"

"Please Kurt? It would mean the world to me. I could go with my cousin, but… I really want to go with you." Jen hooked her hand through his. "When I'm with you, I always have so much fun. You always make me laugh, and I feel so comfortable with you."

"Jen, are you asking me on a date?"

Jen, not wanting Kurt to see her face so red, turned her gaze away and nodded. "Maybe."

Kurt smiled and hugged her. Jen's eyes widened and she pulled away to see his face. He had a huge grin. She laughed. It was adorable. For awhile now, they had been good friends, but both of them wanted more. Neither one had gathered the courage to ask the other one out, but they were slowly getting there. If things kept up the way they were, they wouldn't have to ask each other out.

"So you're name is Sage?" Magneto smiled. "This should work out perfectly."

"Excuse me, look, I'm just looking for my sister, okay?" Sage stood, hand on her waist, not really looking at Magneto. She adjusted the bag she had hanging from her shoulder and sighed. "If you can't help me, then I'm leaving."

"Oh, no, I think I can help you find your sister." Magneto placed his hand against her back. "I know exactly where your sister is."

"Great!" Sage straightened up, finally focusing on Magneto. "Where? I need to teach that twin of mine a lesson. She really thinks that she can just leave me behind."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

_Things were beginning to get difficult. Slowly the group was drifting, and heading their own ways. This upcoming war was zapping us of all our energy. We were tired. We were beginning to not care anymore, but we knew better than that. It was our responsibility now, and we had to be prepared for it. But why us? Why did they have to choose us of all people? Were we really ready for this?_

"Sage?" Lily stood there, unsure of what to think. Why was Sage here? Did she follow her sister? "What are you doing here?"

"I've come to teach my twin a lesson." Sage looked around. "Is she here?" She wanted to say that Magneto said she was, but Magneto had made her promise to never mention his name. Sage hated school. She just wanted to find her sister, hang around for a bit, and make a break for it. School wasn't her thing.

"Um, actually she went out with some people." Lily tied her hair up into a ponytail, grabbed her bag and headed towards the training center. She was scheduled to meet Jean there in five minutes. Sage followed her.

"Do you know when she'll be back?"

"No." Lily walked into the room, Sage still tailing her. Lily stopped and turned to face her. "Sage, I'd love to stop and chat right now, but I have to train."

"New student?" Jean walked in, startling the two girls. "You're letting your guard down Lily. You should have sensed me coming."

"Sorry Professor Grey." Lily glared at Sage until she realized something. She turned her gaze to Jean. "You can tell the difference?"

"It's their aura. This young lady screams 'I'm someone new. Give me attention.'" Lily looked at Sage and then shrugged.

"Okay then. If you say so Professor." Lily set her bag down and took a seat. "So, what do you got in store for me today?"

"Well, seems you have a guest, so why don't you entertain her today instead?"

"Are you serious?" Lily stared wide eyed at Jean. She was usually very strict about skipping training. "You are Professor Grey, right?" Jean laughed.

"Just go. Besides, she seems anxious to find her sister."

Lily sighed. "Okay, fine." She stood. "Let me just take my stuff to my room." The two girls made their way up to Lily's room, allowing her to drop of her bag. Lily grabbed her purse and threw out her senses, searching for Sage's twin. After locating her, Lily went after her, Sage glued to her side. Lily only shook her head, a little frustrated that she had to skip training just to go on a search.

"Are you okay Lily?" Sage asked her.

"Peachy." She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. There was no point in losing her temper. She didn't mind that Sage was here. She liked Sage, but it was because Sage wouldn't stop asking about her sister. It was my twin this and my twin that. It was driving Lily crazy.

Lily stormed into the comic store. A group of girls stopped laughing and turned to face her. "Talya!" Tal jumped back, staring past Lily.

"God no."

"Talya Sage Saneda!" Sage stormed up to her sister. "Who the hell do you think you are to leave me back home and not even invite me to come with you? I feel so unloved."

"Oh no, not unloved. Try annoying." Tal hid behind Jen, making sure not to get anywhere near her sister.

"What? See how it is."

"You know what, how about this?" Jen cut in, trying to bring peace to the group. "Lets all go out and eat. We can talk then." The girls all looked around at each other and eventually agreed to Jen's plan. Tal continued to hide behind Jen while Lily tried to keep herself calm. Sage decided all was fine with her and resumed annoying everyone as they made their way to the nearest food place.

Everyone ordered some form of taco and the four girls sat in a booth. Tal sat across from Sage. Lily had wanted to sit next to her cousin, but was instead forced to sit next to Sage. She bit into her taco, trying her best to ignore the girl right next to her.

"So Sage, how did you get on Earth?" Jen asked, trying to start up conversation.

"Oh, I took one of Dad's spare portal keys." She hummed a merry tune, all the while shoving her taco into her mouth.

"I bet you came just to annoy everyone," Tal muttered under her breath.

"Not really." Sage smiled. "Just you." Tal glared at her sister.

"Hello girls." Lily looked up to see Morion pull up a chair and sit at the end of their booth. "This looks good." He stole one of Lily's tacos. She blinked, but then shrugged it off.

"Help yourself."

"Not hungry?" he asked.

"I suddenly lost my appetite." She figured it was because her head was pounding so hard that it sounded like drums.

Sage looked over at Morion and grinned. "You're hot. What's your name?"

Morion only glanced at her, then went back to focusing on Lily. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." She smiled. "Wanna do me a favor?"

"What's that?" He finished off the stolen taco.

"Walk with me back to the institute."

"Sure." He stood and helped Lily out of the booth. Lily looked over at her friends and told them she'd see them later. She just wanted to go back and lay down for a little while. Maybe then her head would stop pounding.

After they left, Sage began throwing a fit. "And here I was being nice. The least he could do was give me his name."

"Just give up," Tal warned her. "He's only got eyes for Lily." Tal finished her food and gathered her trash. "Look Sage, just go back home."

"I don't want to. Besides, Mom and Dad were worried about you, so I figured I'd come check on you for them."

"Without their permission."

"Sage, what are you plotting this time?" Jen asked as she got up from her seat, Talya following behind her.

"That hurts Jen. What reason do I have to plot against my dear friends?" Sage made her way out of her seat as well and followed the two girls outside.

"Friends?" Jen stopped to face the girl. "Last I checked you said you didn't need any friends, especially if those friends involved us."

"I don't recall that." Sage grinned and draped her arm over Jen's shoulder. "I mean, why would I say such a thing?"

Jen just growled and shrugged Sage's arm off her shoulder. "Leave us alone Sage."

"Oh, I can't do that Jen." Sage slowly walked away from the two girls, still facing them as she spoke. "You see, I have my own agenda and that involves all of you. That would be to make your lives a living hell." Fog lifted around all of them and when it died down, Sage was gone.

Jen clenched her teeth together, making sure not to shout out in anger. Damn Sage. She was always up to no good. Jen remembered when Sage used to be a decent person. What had happened to her?

"It's that guy's fault." Tal sighed and made her way back to the institute. She's not the sister I once knew.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

_So now Sage was in town. Exactly what we needed, more annoyances. So anyway, it's not like we don't like Sage, it's just that sometimes she can get a little too annoying. I think she does it on purpose most of the time. Sage could be a loveable person. Right now just wasn't one of those times. All we had to do was ignore her though, right? Besides, she didn't even stick around the institute. She had somewhere else she was staying. As for our other problems… we put them on hold for a little while. I was tired of thinking._

Gambit stood outside of Xavier's Institute for Mutants. Everyone here looked happy and free. It was almost like they didn't have a worry in the world. He searched the grounds, hoping to maybe find Talya. Even is he did find her though, what could he say to her? 'Oh, I know we're enemies, but can we still date?' Yeah right. He shook his head clear and sighed.

It was just his luck. He finds someone he actually really liked, loved even, and he couldn't be with her. What's even worse is he was ordered to kill her. How could he do that?

"Gambit?"

Gambit jumped away from the gate and turned to face Tal who had been standing right behind him. For a moment Tal looked confused but then she smiled, jumping for joy.

"I knew it. Gambit, what are you doing here?" Tal stepped toward him, but he stepped back away from her.

Tal cocked her head to the side in confusion. "Gambit?" She tried to reach out for him, but he only pulled away. "What's wrong? Do you hate me?"

"No. Remy could never hate you. Remy just… sorry Tal." He turned and ran away, leaving Tal to stand there confused and alone. She fought back tears and made her way inside the institute.

Tal threw her bag onto her bed and laid down, staring up at her ceiling where she had placed a poster of Marilyn Monroe, outlined with pictures of Gambit. She wanted to tear them down and rid herself of those memories, but she didn't have the courage to do so. She still held faith in Gambit and prayed each day that he would return to her.

"Admiring your shrine again?" Kitty asked and she walked into their room. "Here's lunch." Kitty threw a sandwich at Tal. "I know you haven't eaten yet today and if Lily finds out she'll kill you, so save yourself the trouble and just eat it." Tal sighed and opened the poorly wrapped sandwich, taking a small bite into it.

Kitty looked at her friend, blinking. "Tal, is everything okay? You look a little down." She sat next to her friend and placed her hand against her forehead. "Well, you don't have a fever." Kitty stared at Tal, waiting for a response.

It took a while for Tal to say anything. It's not that she didn't want to. It was just hard to explain what she had just gone through. It had hurt worse than not finding Gambit at the club. "I ran into Gambit today."

"Really? Where?" Kitty asked.

"Out in front of the gates."

"That's great. So he didn't forget about you Tal."

Tal sighed. "I don't think he likes me anymore."

"Tal…"

"He ran away after he saw me." Tal took a deep breath. "But it's okay." She forced a smile and it hurt Kitty to see it. "I'll be alright. I don't need him in my life." She pushed herself off her bed and twirled around to face Kitty. "And to prove it, we're going to the club tonight."

"But Tal…" Kitty was alarmed now. What if Gambit actually showed up this time? What was Tal playing at here? Kitty knew how much Tal loved Gambit, so why would she do something as stupid as that? She could get over a guy in just five minutes… could she?

Micki was walking around the institute garden. It was a beautiful sight. This was her favorite location. Ever since she first came across it, she's visited it everyday, and found a seat somewhere, just meditating. Today though, as she reached the garden, she had run into Logan.

"You're Mikala, right?" Logan had asked her. Micki only nodded and continued walking. "Who sent you to find Lily and her friends?"

"I'm sorry. That information is confidential."

Logan only shrugged. "If you say so. I'd usually try and get an answer I really want, but you don't seem like the type to break easily." Micki nodded.

"Glad you established that."

"So what are your abilities?" Logan questioned her.

"Strength."

"Really? So how strong are you then?"

Micki shrugged. "Never tested. Never really mattered to me as long as I was strong enough."

"Strong enough for what?"

"To protect my friends," Micki answered truthfully. Really, that's all that mattered to her. As long as she could protect those she loved, she didn't need anymore.

"Xavier want you to join me on a mission to find a mutant named Pietro."

"Who else is going?"

"You, me and Amara"

Micki thought for a moment before finally deciding, "Okay, I'll go."

Lily was down in the TV room, music blaring and she danced around the small room with Rogue. Sakura and Jubilee were just sitting around, watching the two and laughing. Lily took Rogue's hand and twirled around, laughing as Rogue pulled her in and then threw her back out.

Jen walked in, Lily bumping into her. Lily spun around and pulled her cousin into the dance. Jen's eyes widened, and she let out a squeal as Lily twirled her around. Finally Jen started laughing and joined in on her own. After awhile, Lily sunk into a chair, Jen and Rogue following suit.

"Hey, Jen, aren't you going to the fair with Kurt tonight?" Lily asked her cousin, all the while still catching her breath. Jen only nodded, not able to speak at the moment. Sakura only laughed at her friends.

"That's what you get for dancing around like mad people."

Lily only laughed and threw a pillow at Sakura. "You're about as mad as we are."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Does anyone know where Micki is?" Jen asked.

"Probably getting ready for her new mission," Lily answered. "Logan came looking for her and I pointed him towards the garden. She's going to go help look for a new recruit."

"More X-Men?" Sakura asked.

"There's always more X-Men," Jubilee explained. "I guess really there can't possibly be too many X-Men. We could always use more people on our side."

Sakura nodded. "I guess."

"Hey, we could have thought the same when the Professor recruited you," said Rogue matter of fact.

"True." Sakura shrugged. "Anyway, as a dedicated Marauder, I have mischief to manage." Lily and Jen laughed, shooing Sakura and Jubilee away.

"And you Jen," Lily started, turning to her cousin, "should get ready for your date tonight." Jen laughed nervously and retreated to her room. "What are your plans today Rogue?"

"Well, me and Bobby are going to try and work things out, so we're going to go see a movie."

"Oh, that's great. I hope things work out between the two of you." She waved bye as Rogue ran off. She let out a deep sigh. Lily was now all by herself. She didn't want to admit it, but she actually envied everyone who had someone to be with, though she didn't regret giving up on Bobby. She could never ruin her friendship with Rogue.

"Why all alone?" Morion took a seat next to Lily.

"Felt like it." Lily turned away from Morion, and turned on the TV. After flipping through the channels, she settled for Cartoon Network, which had the Teen Titans playing."

"Who's your favorite?" Morion had asked her.

Lily shrugged. "I don't really have a favorite." She turned to face him. "And you?"

"I don't even watch the show."

Lily blinked. Then why was he watching it now? He could be off doing something better than watching some stupid cartoon with her… well stupid for him. Really, Lily loved Teen Titans. So then, why was he still here?

"I thought you could use the company," Morion said, basically just reading the expressions on her face.

"I don't need your company," Lily proclaimed, but was actually grateful for it.

"Then I suppose you plan on watching cartoons by yourself all night?"

"Maybe."

"So would it bother you if I sat here watching them too?"

"Of course it would."

"But you can't make me go away, can you?"

"Unfortunately."

Morion felt that he was starting to annoy her, but kept on anyway. It was actually amusing watching her get frustrated. "So then, I'm just going to sit right here, okay?"

"Whatever." She wanted to move away, but she didn't because she wasn't ready to admit that Morion was getting to her. He was doing it on purpose. It was like a game to him now.

"You like cartoons, huh?" he asked.

"I love cartoons." Lily was once again flipping through the channels. Morion almost laughed. He could barely hear Lily growling, but she definitely was. Lily looked over and saw the smirk on Morion's face as he wasn't watching the TV. He had his eyes closed, and was leaning back comfortably. "GAH! THAT'S IT!" Lily stood from her seat, glaring at Morion. She threw the remote down next to him. "What is it with you and always trying to piss me off?"

Morion grinned and stared up at her. "Really? I was pissing you off? I didn't know."

This time Lily just screamed and stormed up to her room. Bobby, who had been walking by with Rogue, saw the whole thing and glared at Morion as Rogue pulled him along. Morion only shrugged, stood and went outside. Morion knew that Bobby still liked Lily, but even so, this was a battle Bobby would never win.

Mara looked around, amazed at how big the place was. She took John's hand, and allowed him to lead her through his home. He brought her to a large room that had two other people in it.

"Who are they?" Mara asked.

"Mara, this is Magneto and Mystic," John introduced the two people sitting next to the window.

"Nice to meet you Mara." Magneto walked over and placed his hand out.

Mara hesitated to take it. She had heard about Magneto at the institute from Xavier. From what she heard, Magneto was not a person to be trifled with. "Mara is happy to meet you, Magneto sir." Mara took his hand.

"John speaks very highly of you Mara," Magneto explained. "He's taken quite a liking to you."

"Mara is really happy with John." This was the first she had ever heard of John being with Magneto. She really liked him, but this side of him frightened her. Magneto was their enemy, which meant, wasn't John also her enemy? She was confused.

"Would you like to see my room?" Mara shook her head and looked up at John. She grinned. She knew what was on his mind.

"Mara would love to see your room." And so it was, John brought Mara up to his room, where they stayed all night long. She had forgotten all about her worries, for there was something much more important on her mind.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

_Okay, seriously, I was missing talking to Bobby. I mean seriously, we were friends before this whole like thing began. And yet, I envied Rogue being with him, and I wasn't sure just how much I wanted to be with Morion. I really liked him, but there were times when I'd start wanting to be with him that he'd start annoying me and I'd want to push him away all over again. I just couldn't make up my mind._

"Okay Marauders, lets take the vow!" Lily commanded.

"Do I have to?" asked Tal. "I mean, I don't even want to be part of the Marauders." The other three girls gasped.

"Talya Sage Saneda, how dare you say such a thing?" lectured Sakura. "Being a Marauder is a such a privilege. You have no idea how many other people would love to join us."

"But as we have said before," Jen pointed out, "there are only four." She started laughing maniacally.

"Okay everyone," Lily cut in. "That's all good and nice, but no mischief till we take the vow."

All four girls nodded and tucked their hands into their circle, piling them one on the other. All four girls spoke at once. "We solemnly swear we are up to no good."

Grinning at each other, they all linked arms and began walking down the hallway. Everyone passed by quickly, whispers being heard such as 'It's the Marauders' and 'They're at it again' or 'Watch out. Stay out of their path'. The girls only laughed, grinning evilly at each passerby.

Rogue came up to the four girls. "So who's your target today?"

"Morion," Lily responded all too quickly. Morion had been getting on her nerves lately, and now was the time for a little payback.

"Oh." Rogue smiled. "Have fun." And then she went away.

The girls continued their walk and stopped in front of a door. Lily took out a small bobby pin and picked at the lock. When she heard a click, she smiled and pushed the door open. Slowly and quietly the girls crept into the small room. Lily knew from experience that Morion owned his own room, and when she saw him earlier, he had said that he would turn in early tonight. Lily motioned for the other girls to circle around his bed. Sakura carefully shut the door and crept to the end of Morion's bed. They all stared down at a sleeping Morion. Using her mind, Lily made sure that Morion remained asleep.

Lily stood right next to his bed, staring down at his sleeping form. Nothing was going to stop her from getting her revenge tonight. Lily kneeled down and rested her head right next to his pillow.

"Look at you," she said quietly, "sleeping so peacefully. Are they happy dreams?" She suppressed a giggle and stood back up.

"Did you lock him in his own mind?" Jen had asked her cousin, making sure that everything was ready. Lily nodded and gave the signal.

"So why am I here again?" Tal asked her friends.

"To try and keep us out of trouble," explained Jen, emphasizing the try. "Personally, you'll never succeed." Jen grinned at her friend. "Besides, we'd rather have you on our team than some other supposed know it all. We have to have four."

"Besides, we've been the Marauders since we were little," Sakura added. "Why change that now?"

Tal shrugged. "Good point."

Sakura took a small balloon filled with red paint and tied it to a thin string. Somehow Lily had managed to get Tal into using her wind to hold the balloon over Morion's head while Jen froze the string to the ceiling. Afterwards, Sakura tied the string to Morion's wrist.

"Aww, he looks like a happy little child with his balloon floating above," Sakura mocked him. Jen coughed over trying to hold in her laugh.

Lily just shrugged and motioned for Jen to finish it off. Jen went to the end of the bed and started freezing Morion's feet in thick ice all the way to his knees. For Jen this was wonderful. She hated Morion. The only reason she ever put up with him was for her cousin, but if Lily would allow her to attack him, who was Jen to pass up the opportunity?

They each slowly left the room, Lily still holding Morion in his own mind. Right as they closed the door, Lily threw a horrible dream into his mind. The four girls leaned against the door, listening. Lily leaned against the door and threw her mind into the room. The other girls held onto her, their eyes closed as well so they could see what Lily saw.

Inside Morion jumped from a bad dream. His eyes flew open, and as he pulled his hand back, the ice holding the string broke, and the balloon burst over his head, covering him in red paint. He yelled out in frustration, and when he tried to move, realized that his legs were frozen down and numb from all the cold. He growled and cursed at the door, shouting at the Marauders.

Outside, the girls laughed hysterically. You could hear them shout, "Mischief managed," just as they did after every successful Marauder's mission. It was they queue that the Marauders were done their work for the day. They made their way upstairs to Lily's and Jen's room

Morion on the other hand could not chase after them because he was too busy trying to break the ice holding him down. When he finally finished freeing himself, he wiped most the paint off himself and ran up to Lily's room, banging on her door.

"Lily, I know you're in there."

"Lily's not here," Jen shouted out to him. Morion stopped banging on the door. In the background you could hear muffled giggles and a shush from one of the girls.

"Jen, open this door."

"And what makes you think I'm going to listen to you?" Jen asked.

"Jen, I need to speak with Lily."

"I told you, Lily's not here."

"I'm not stupid."

"Really? You honestly had me fooled."

"JEN!" Morion started banging on the door once again. "I'm warning you."

"What do you suppose on doing? Breaking down the door? Oh, I'm so scared." There were more giggles, and finally Jen said, "She doesn't want to talk to you. Go away."

"Like hell I will. I don't care if she doesn't want to talk. I'm tired of her stupid little games. Either she talks to me or she doesn't."

"And how do you expect her to do that when you won't leave her alone?"

"Just plea…"

The door swung open and Lily stood there glaring at him. "I hate you," she simply said. "I hate you. You're a jerk, and won't ever leave me alone. You're favorite pastime happens to be pissing me off, so I figured I'd get you back. Well, I have, and now I want nothing to do with you." Lily turned around and went to shut herself back in her room, but Morion grabbed her arm before she could and dragged her down the hall away from her friends.

"I don't know what you're playing at here, Lily, but get over it."

"Me? I'm not playing games. First you make me like you and then you make me hate you, and you keep doing it over and over again. I'm tired of it. I can only take so much."

"So you admit you do like me."

"I don't know." Lily noticed that Morion dragged her all the way back to his room. Well, it was the only place they could really talk privately. "I'm confused, okay? I can't make up my mind."

"Well do it quickly. I'm tired of waiting."

"Well no one told you to wait!" Lily shouted at him.

"I wanted to wait. I thought you might just be worth it, but I'm not sure how much longer I can wait." She watched him sit down on his bed, the side that wasn't covered in paint.

Lily said nothing. There was nothing she could say. Instead she grabbed a towel off his dresser, poured water on it, and started wiping his face. "I'm sorry." She sighed. "I was just so mad. I didn't know what to do. And we've been arguing so much lately. When we had a Marauders meeting today, everyone was talking about how they would love to pull a prank on you, and I even got Tal to join for once. I was still really upset after our last argument."

Morion grabbed her hand, pulling the towel away from her.

"M-Morion?" stuttered Lily.

He only pulled her down on the bed next to him. He placed his hand on her cheek. "Be with me Lily."

"But… and today… You still…?" Lily couldn't quite come up with one whole sentence. Morion just laughed.

"Yes, even after today I still like you. I think it's that fiery attitude of yours that draws my attention to you." He leaned in close to her. "Lily, I don't beg, but right now I'm begging you, please make up your mind and just be with me."

"Mor…" His lips locked with hers. Whatever doubts she'd had before of being with Morion, of being with anyone, were all just wiped away to the back of her mind. She didn't want to forget, but as she felt herself fall back against the bed, holding Morion close to her, she couldn't stop those thoughts drifting away. This was what she wanted. This was what she needed. She needed to feel this warmth again… this comfort. She loved it here. She loved this feeling. Why hadn't she done this before?

Morion broke away, staring down at her. "So does that mean yes?" Lily never answered. She only smiled and pulled him back down into a kiss. She made up her mind. What better way to get over the past than to move on?


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

_I can't believe it. I was actually with Morion. Truthfully, I'd wanted to be with him for awhile, but I was always afraid. But now that I think about it, he wouldn't want me to live my life alone. But just how would things with Morion go? None of my friends liked him. Come to think of it, no one at all liked him. Why did I like him? He was never nice. So why did I want to be with him so badly? Oh well, I guess some things just aren't meant for you to understand._

"Lily, where have you been?" Jen attacked her cousin as Lily walked into the room. "And why is there paint on your back? What did Morion do to you?"

"Sorry." Lily laughed nervously. "Don't worry. He didn't do anything." Lily blinked and looked around. "Where are the rest of the Marauders?"

"Well, Tal said she had some studying to do. Sakura had a date with Lance."

"Oh, okay." Lily sat back on her bed and sighed happily, laying back and staring up at her ceiling.

"You seem happy," her cousin pointed out.

"Really?"

"Yeah… what happened after.. Oh my God!" Jen jumped on the bed next to her cousin. "You're dating Morion."

Lily blinked and automatically sat up, colliding heads with Jen. The two girls fell away from each other, shouting in pain while holding their heads. Lily sat up, but more slowly this time. She opened one eye at her cousin, and then opened the other. For a moment she had to let all the black spots disappear.

"Oh my God!" Lily shouted out.

"Lily, what's wrong?" Jen asked her cousin, still holding her head.

"Oh my God!" Lily shouted again. Her eyes were wide, like she'd done something wrong. "I can't believe it. Oh my God!"

"Lily, will you stop saying that and explain to me what's wrong?"

"I can't believe I… Jen… I… Oh no… Why did… How could this… Oh my…"

"Lily, take a deep breath and explain to me slowly what happened."

"Okay… okay." Lily took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. "Jen, I'm dating Morion. He… I… we kissed."

Jen didn't say anything. For a moment she just sat there silent. Finally, after shaking her head, she said, "It was bound to happen."

"What do you mean?" Lily asked.

"It was obvious to everyone that you liked Morion. We just wouldn't say anything."

"Oh…" Lily sighed. "I hope Bobby will be okay." One reason she had never chosen one is she didn't want to hurt the other.

"Bobby has Rogue," Jen explained to Lily. There was a knock on the door and then Rogue walked in.

"You shouldn't leave your door unlocked," Rogue lectured.

"Rogue, what brings you here?"

"We got it!"

Lily and Jen looked at each other, unsure of what Rogue was talking about. Then it hit them and both girls shouted, "The room!" in unison. They all raced downstairs and into Xavier's office. He only smiled, greeting the three girls. He had expected them.

"Here are your keys. One for each of you. Storm shall show you to your new room." Storm walked up to the three girls and led them to the top floor in the corner, where they were shown their new room. To one side was a bunk bed with its side placed up against the wall, and at the end of the bunk bed sat another bed. To the other side were three dressers for the girls. On the back wall was a walk in closet. In the corner by the dressers sat a TV, and in the other corner by the beds was their computer. The girls squealed, jumping for joy. Now all that was left was decorating.

"This is perfect," said Lily, thrilled to finally have their new room. She wasn't sure if they were ever really going to get. She climbed on the top bunk. "I claim this spot."

Rogue jumped on the bed. "And I claim this one."

Jen laughed and sat on the bottom bunk. "Then I guess this one is mine."

That night the three girls slept in their new room. The next day, when Jen and Rogue awoke, Lily was standing at the door. "I'm going down to pack my stuff," Lily explained and left the room.

Jen looked over at Rogue. "Want me to help with your stuff? I'm sure you're dying to move out more than me and Lily, and knowing Lily, she'll pack my stuff as well."

Rogue smiled. "It would be greatly appreciated." The two girls set down for Rogue's old room, where Tabitha was dancing around like a mad woman, music blaring so loud you could hear it down the hall. Rogue sighed and threw her clothes in a bag. Jen grabbed a box and started throwing Rogue's possessions in there.

"You moving out?" Tabitha asked.

"Yup," Rogue answered all too quickly. Tabitha grinned.

"Here, let me help." All the stuff that Jen couldn't fit into her one box, Tabitha threw into another box. "This is my goodbye. I'm happy you're leaving." She followed Jen and Rogue up to their new room. "Nice place." She set the box down. "Much bigger, but I guess it has to be for three people." Tabitha shrugged and left. "Bye."

Rogue smiled. "Finally, I'm rid of Tabitha." She fell back onto her bed. "This is so great."

Meanwhile, Lily was looking around her room. Everything was packed, but this was going to take a few trips. She grabbed the two bags full of clothes. She opened the door, and there stood Bobby.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I was looking for Jen. Is she here?"

"We moved."

"Oh… okay." Bobby stood there, unsure of what to do.

Lily watched him look around nervously and she couldn't help but laugh. "I hear things between you and Rogue have gotten better." Bobby blinked and nodded. Why was Lily talking to him? "Tell you what," she started, "you help me bring some of this stuff to our new room and you can see Jen and Rogue. Plus, I'd really like to start over. Not talking to you was the wrong thing to do." She smiled. "I like you being my friend. You were fun to talk to, and I miss it. Could you forgive me?"

"Lily, you're not the one that needs forgiving. What you did was understandable. It's what I did that needs forgiving, but I don't think I deserve it."

"Well, I think you do. Bobby, if I hadn't of forgiven you already, I wouldn't want to be your friend." Lily dropped the two bags of clothes and hugged Bobby. He was surprised, but eventually hugged her back. "Now are you going to help me or what?" She pulled away and picked up the two bags once again. Bobby laughed and grabbed a box. The two headed up to the room where Rogue and Jen were both sitting.

"I see you both are having fun," Lily said, dropping the two bags. Bobby set the box down next to the dressers.

Rogue smiled. "Sorry. We actually just got back up here. Tabitha just left. She was helping me move my stuff."

"I see." Lily turned to Bobby. "Want to help me get more stuff?"

"You two are talking again?" Jen asked. She smiled. "But then why not Lily when you've made your choice already?" Rogue and Bobby looked at each other and then to Lily.

"What choice?" Bobby asked.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Jen apologized, quickly covering her mouth.

"Lily, are you going out with Morion?" Rogue asked.

Lily didn't know what to do. She looked over at Bobby unsure of if he would still want to be her friend if he found out. At first Bobby looked surprised, but then he smiled.

"That's great Lily. I'm happy that you've found someone you can be happy with."

Lily was taken by surprise with Bobby's reaction. She wasn't sure how to respond. Eventually she just forced on a smile. "Yeah, thanks."

"Anyway, lets go get the rest of your stuff," Bobby suggested, probably wanting to get away as soon.

"Um… okay."

"We'll help," offered Jen, and her and Rogue stood from their seats. The group of four headed back down to the room, this being their last trip. Jen and Lily looked around the room, already missing it. This is where they had first found each other on Earth. The two girls took some time before they headed back upstairs.

After they made it back to their new room, Bobby said bye to the three girls and left. Rogue, Lily and Jen spent the rest of the day unpacking and decorating their room. When they were finished they were quite proud of their work. Lily had set up a collage of pictures right over her bed. Jen had another collage on the bottom of Lily's bed. Rogue's collage was on the wall at the top of her bed. Posters were placed on the walls all around them, and the girls had set up curtains around the beds. In front of the closet door, they hung beads.

By the end of the day they were sitting on the floor, watching movies. Finally, they were now officially moved into their new room.

Rogue poured soda for everyone. "Here's to our new room!"


	17. Chapter 17

AN: Thank you to those who reviewed my story last time. It made me so happy and motivated me to type up the next chapter. I'm glad that you all have enjoyed my story so far, and I hope that you all keep enjoying it.

Chapter 17

_So how long have I been on Earth? I wasn't sure anymore. I seemed to have lost track of the time. I guess truthfully though it really didn't matter. What was time anyway? It meant nothing to me._

_So about everyone else, they were all doing great. I thought so at least._

"Wow, I can't believe we actually talked Professor Xavier into letting us have a school dance," Kitty sang out. Lily only laughed. Lily knew why Xavier had agreed to this. Lately many students had been under so much pressure with mutants gone astray. There had been so many missions lately and so Lily had convinced Xavier that everyone needed a break.

"Lily, what do you think?" Jen asked, snapping her cousin out of her thoughts.

"Oh, blue and violet are great colors. It definitely suits our 'Midnight Stroll' theme." Lily wrote the color choices into her notebook. "Perfect."

"So what kinds of snacks will we have and who will make them?" Rogue asked.

"Me and Sakura will make the snacks. Professor Xavier already gave us permission. We'll be making cookies and brownies and other stuff like that." Once again Lily scribbled into her notebook.

"Oh, there's the bell," Jen exclaimed jumping up from her seat. Lily gathered her things and followed the girls out of the small room. They walked halfway down the hall together then split, each heading in their own direction.

"Lily." Lily spun around, allowing Morion to catch up. She watched as Jen continued walking to their class. Lily sighed. She wished that her friends and boyfriend could just get along.

"Where have you been?" Morion asked her.

"Dance Committee Meeting," Lily answered, linking her hand into his and walking to class.

"Isn't that a month away?"

"Which is why we have to start planning now," Lily tried to explain.

"I don't see why but whatever. It's not like I'm going anyway." There was a tug on his hand and he realized Lily had stopped.

"What do you mean 'not going'?" Lily looked really hurt. "Then who am I supposed to go with?"

"Your friends of course… What's wrong with that?" Morion asked.

Lily stared at him for a moment. He couldn't tell if she was angry or hurt. From what he could tell, Lily looked like she was struggling with herself. Finally she just pulled her hand from his and went into the classroom, taking her seat next to her cousin.

"Lily?" Jen searched her cousin's eyes. "What happened? What's wrong?"

"Nothing. It just seems I'll be going to the dance by myself."

Jen blinked and then glared at Morion. He avoided her as he walked past and the moment he said, he felt his chair freeze. He growled, but did nothing. He wasn't sure if he actually deserved it, but whatever. Why should he go to the dance anyway? It was pointless. He wasn't going to go no matter what… even if Lily begged him, though he had this strange feeling that she wouldn't talk to him for awhile.

Micki looked around the small rain forest. She couldn't help but smile. Placing her hand against a tree, she listened to the forest speak to her. She pointed in a direction and followed Logan through the vines, allowing him to chop them down before she got near them.

"Are you sure we're headed in the right direction?" Amara asked.

"Do you doubt my ability to speak with nature?" Micki asked, obviously offended.

"No, I just don't understand it. From what I heard, you're only ability is super human strength. Nobody mentioned anything about Earth powers."

"I don't have any. I can just feel nature around me, and unlike most other people, I know how to listen. It's like meditating. I just become one with my surroundings." Micki looked back at Amara, but she only shrugged.

"Whatever."

"Both of you stop bickering. Micki, make sure we're going the right way."

Micki only growled and did as she was told. "It's the right way."

"I don't get it. Why go through so much trouble just for one mutant?" Amara questioned.

"We need to recruit as many mutants as possible before someone else leads them down the wrong path."

"What if he doesn't want to come with us."

"Then there's nothing we can do about it." Obviously Logan was getting annoyed with Amara.

"For someone who used to be so shy, you ask too many questions," Micki pointed out.

"I was just curious," Amara said quietly, now shutting up. Micki sighed. She hadn't meant to shut the girl up. It was more comforting than everyone walking in silence.

The three ceased walking when they came upon a small village built up in the trees. Micki smiled, remembering her home back on Jupiter. She grabbed a hold of one of the ladders and climbed up. The trio looked around, but the place looked pretty much abandoned. Micki stepped into one house and blinked. She could have sworn she felt something brush past her. Looking around, she didn't see anyone.

"Then what?" she asked herself. She walked over to a table and saw food. She was surprised to see steam rise up from it. "This food is brand new," she voiced out loud. "Someone is definitely here. Then maybe that was Pietro I felt brush past me." Micki remembered Logan explaining that Pietro's ability was speed. "Logan," Micki called out. Both Logan and Amara walked in. Micki pointed to the food.

Logan stared at the food then started sniffing the air. "Someone was definitely here."

Amara looked around. She saw no one. Carefully she walked out of the small house. She fell back in when something brushed against her, nearly throwing her. Then she saw it. On the bridge you could see a bit of dust going almost in a circle. Amara pointed it out to Micki. Micki walked over and grinned. Pietro probably thought he could trap them in like that. She felt the breeze go past and waited till it went past again. If she timed this right, she just might be successful.

"What's he trying to do?" Amara asked.

"Trap us and scare us," Logan explained.

"Why?"

"Probably wants us to think he's better than us so that we'll go away when he's stopped."

"Too bad for him." Micki felt the breeze again and waited. Right before she knew the breeze would come, she threw her arm out. Pietro slammed into it and flew back. Micki walked over to him and lifted him by the shirt, making sure that his feet didn't touch the ground. "Nice try."

Pietro glared down at her, but then pulled off a grin. "You're strong. So, is that your ability?" Micki nodded. "Cool."

"No more games," Logan ordered, "or next time you'll find these through you." And so he showed the young boy his claws. Pietro cowered and promised he wouldn't play anymore games on them. Micki finally set him down and he followed the trio into the tree house.

"Lily, why won't you talk to me?" Morion followed Lily down the hall to her room only to have the door slammed in his face. "Lily!" He started banging on the door. "Is this because of the dance?" The door flew open and Morion stared at Jen and Rogue. "I want to speak with Lily."

"Well, she doesn't want to speak with you," Jen explained.

"So just leave," Rogue demanded.

At first Morion stayed glued to his spot but eventually relented, leaving the three girls alone. He'd find a chance to speak with Lily some other time.

Jen shut the door and both girls turned to face Lily who Bobby was trying to comfort. "It's okay Lily," Bobby said softly. "You don't need him there to have fun anyway. Why not just go with someone else?"

Lily smiled slightly and nodded her head. "I guess I could do that, but what's the point in having a boyfriend if you have to go to a dance with someone else?"

"Though that's a good point," Rogue started, "it would be weird to see Morion there in a tux." The four teenagers started laughing. "Kinda scary, don't you agree?"

Lily nodded. "Yeah actually it is. Thanks guys. You're the best."

"Anyway, I'd love to stay longer," Bobby began, "but me and Rogue have a movie to catch and we already bought the tickets."

"Oh, that's great. I'm so glad the two of you are doing so much better," Lily stated. "I envy you both. You can at least be happy with one another."

"Um… right," Rogue said almost too cheerfully. She quickly pulled Bobby out of the room.

"What with her?" Lily asked her cousin.

"Well, though Bobby is now dedicating all his time to Rogue, I think Rogue is starting to fall for someone else. She's not sure what she wants to do." Jen sat on her bed. "I'm going shopping for dresses. Wanna come?"

"Sure!" Lily smiled brightly and grabbed her purse. Nothing was better for cheering her up than some spending of her money.

"So did Aunt Rei send you money as well?" Jen asked Lily.

"Actually it was my father who sent me more money," Lily explained. "I take it Aunt Ami is the one who sent you your money." Jen nodded and the two girls giggled. Really, it didn't matter who sent the money as long as they had it. Shopping was always a great past time.

Mara was staring up at the sky. Jupiter was up there somewhere, but really, she didn't miss it. She remembered back on Jupiter how she was treated. No one cared for her. She had to fend for herself. Everyone was so high and mighty. They all had something to do with royalty or elves or the military. Mara wandered streets each night, searching for left over food here and there. During the day when people saw her they would throw hard objects her way. Mara never really knew happiness until she came to Earth. Now she had friends, people who really cared for her, and yet, why was she still hesitating to join this war?

"So, you saw Lily?" a young boy with grey hair and black eyes spoke to Angel. Angel nodded, waving the boy to sit down. The boy did as he was told. It's not that he was taking orders from Angel, it's just they had a compromise. Angel had brought him here to Earth in exchange that the boy would help Angel to destroy life. The boy had no problem with that, being as he was addicted to killing.

"Yes, I saw Lily. Diamond, were you not once part of the Pluto royal family?" Angel questioned him, raising an eyebrow.

Diamond shrugged. "Was… not anymore. Don't really care. Didn't matter anyway."

"I see." Angel stood from his seat, Emma quickly rushing over to him. Diamond looked around trying to see where she had come from.

"Diamond, meet my assistant, Emma Frost, a.k.a. White Queen. You will treat her with respect just as you would treat me." Diamond glared at Emma, but nodded anyhow. Diamond wasn't known for treating anyone with respect, but in this case he didn't really have a choice. "And as for seeing Lily or Jen, there will be no killing them, though I don't care what you do with their little friends." Angel grinned and then disappeared with Emma. Diamond was left alone in the small room.

"Rogue, what's wrong?" Bobby asked Rogue as they walked out of the theater. Rogue sighed and turned to face Bobby. She wanted to say something, but never did. "Rogue?" Shaking her head she turned and continued back to the institute, Bobby close behind. He kept trying to talk with her, but Rogue only ignored him. She wanted to talk to him, but what could she say?

"ROGUE!" Finally Bobby was fed up. He grabbed Rogue's arm and spun her around. Suddenly, without meaning to, Rogue's body turned from her normal self into an organic material similar to Colossus. Bobby blinked then sighed. "Rogue, what's going on?"

"I'm sorry Bobby." Quickly she returned to her normal self. "I didn't mean to. It's just…"

"How long has it been going on?"

Rogue looked down ashamed at herself. "Bobby, I…"

"HOW LONG DAMN IT!"

Rogue jumped back, shocked that Bobby had yelled at her. She couldn't for the life of remember ever seeing Bobby that angry before. "I'm sorry. I'm not sure. I think it really started when you went on that mission will Lily. While you were gone Colossus was always here for me. And even after, all my complaints, they were to Colossus. He's always there for me. When you weren't he always was." By now Rogue was shedding tears. Bobby looked away, hurt that now when he was finally dedicating himself to Rogue, she was leaving him.

"Never mind."

"What?" Rogue looked towards him.

"I'm tired Rogue."

"Bobby…" She reached out for him then pulled away. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Bobby forced himself to look at her and faked a smile. "As long as you're happy, it's okay. Congratulations Rogue." With that Bobby ran the rest of the way to the institute, leaving Rogue there on her own. She turned toward the theater and Colossus walked out. She ran to him, burying her face into his shirt.

"I'm so stupid," she shouted at herself. "How could I hurt Bobby?"

"You can't help what you feel Rogue," was all that Colossus could say.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

_So obviously not all relationships were going so smoothly, and me, I'm still not talking to Morion. I refuse to, even though he hasn't given up trying to speak with me. Okay, so it's not such a big deal, but it's just that he doesn't care. I worked so hard to get Professor Xavier to allow us to have this dance. From what I hear, there's never been a school dance here before and well… I just thought it'd be a great opportunity for us to go have some fun and spend time with friends. Granted Morion's only friend is me, but that's beside the point. The point is, he never has any fun and just once I'd like him to join my world._

"So your name is Pietro?" Micki asked. The boy nodded. "Okay, what are you doing here?"

"I live here, can't you tell?" he answered, grinning.

"By yourself?" Wolverine raise an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah by myself. You don't see anyone else here do you?"

Wolverine was getting annoyed with Pietro's smart remarks. "Look boy…"

"So why are you here?" Pietro interrupted.

"To recruit you," Amara answered quietly.

"For what?"

"We want you to join the X-Men," Micki explained. "In case you don't know who we are…"

"I know who you are. You're against Magneto, right?" Micki blinked and nodded. "Then I'm in."

"I don't understand," Micki started. "Why so easy?"

"I hate Magneto. This was a nice and peaceful village before, and then he came. The villagers told me to run and not return, that I was too important to lose. They said one day I would have an important journey to help bring peace between people and mutants. So I left. When I returned Magneto had already killed everyone looking for me."

"Why was he looking for you?" Wolverine questioned.

"Don't you know?" Pietro asked. "He's my father."

"Wait, so you're really going by yourself?" Bobby asked Lily. Lily nodded, packing her things together. "That's not right. What's the point in being together if he won't bring you to one small dance." Lily shrugged. Bobby had been certain that if anyone could persuade Morion to go it would've been Lily. He had guessed wrong. "Well, go with me."

Lily blinked, dropping her bag. "What?" Quickly she bent over, grabbing her bag. She laughed as she walked out the door and into the hallway. "That's funny Bobby. We all know you'll be going with Rogue." She walked up the stairs, Bobby close behind. "Right?" Suddenly she stopped and whirled around to face Bobby. "What happened?"

"She left me."

"Bobby…"

"It's okay though. It doesn't bother me. Me and Rogue were bound to break up eventually."

"But I…"

"It's not your fault."

"But I…"

"Don't worry about it." He smiled and took her hand. "Lily, it's okay. You tried to help, but the problem started before you anyway. There was no stopping it. Our breakup was inevitable."

"I'm sorry Bobby." Lily hugged him tightly. They stayed like for a while, Bobby enjoying the feel of Lily in his arms, till they heard someone clear their throat and both looked over to see Morion staring at them. Quickly, Lily pulled away and rushed up to her room. Morion only glared at Bobby.

"Stay away from her Bobby."

"What's the matter Moron? Afraid you'll lose her to me?"

Morion flamed at the change of name and stormed down the stairs past Bobby. "Don't worry loser, I won't lose her to you"

"Well see about that," Bobby said to himself after Morion was out of sight.

"So then… are you going with Bobby?" Jen asked her cousin. Lily, who was leaning over her desk doing her school work, simply nodded her head.

"That's great," said Rogue, wrapping her arms around her friend from behind. "I thought it would hurt Bobby that he would be going by himself, but now he's got a date, and it's someone he's close with." Rogue pulled away, sitting on the desk next to Lily's work. "Just don't let Morion find out."

"No duh Sherlock," Lily commented, scribbling on a piece of paper. "I'm not so stupid to let Morion of all people find out, at least not until after the dance."

"You should just date Bobby instead," Jen insisted.

"Too late. Morion got to me first."

"That's not fair," commented Rogue. "Bobby was occupied with me for a while."

"I'm sorry, but I've already made up my mind. I'm not going to dump Morion for Bobby. Besides, me and Bobby are just friends now." Lily then ceased her conversation with her two friends and just concentrated on her school work. The other two girls just shrugged and turned on some music.

"So when are you and Colossus going on your first date?" Jen asked.

Rogue blushed and said, "Tonight actually. He's taking me out to the club."

"That's great."

"Gah!" they heard Lily scream and the two girls turned to face her. Lily got up, turning down the music. "I give up. They're just a bunch of words."

"Wow, the amazingly smart Lily is having trouble with school work," commented Rogue, quickly hiding from her friend.

"It's not that. I just can't concentrate on it." Lily flopped down on her bed. "Is it really okay for me to go to the dance with Bobby?" Lily looked at her two friends desperate for some advice.

"I don't see why not," Jen answered, sitting down next to her cousin. "You shouldn't have to go alone, and just because Morion doesn't want to go doesn't mean you should have to go alone or that you shouldn't go at all. Don't let him stop you from having fun. And besides, you've already said it. You and Bobby are only friends now. It's shouldn't matter then."

"I guess." Lily smiled. "Thanks Jen."

"Hey Lily, don't you have a private class with Professor Grey today?" Rogue reminded her.

Lily blinked and then groaned. "Oh yeah. Thanks for reminding me Rogue." Lily got up from her bed and headed out the door, not much caring for her private lessons with Jean.

Nice job out there, Micki," Logan complimented.

"It wasn't much. I just stopped him," Micki explained. "I was only doing what I was sent out here to do." Micki stared back at the boy who was sprawled across two seats, asleep. Amara sat behind him, leaning against the wall, also asleep.

"Why don't you get some rest as well?" Logan suggested. Micki blinked and looked over at the older man.

"It's okay. I'll keep you some company," she told him. Logan laughed a bit.

"Every flown a jet before?"

Micki shook her head. And that's when her lesson began. Logan showed her buttons and what to do to make the jet do whatever. In no time Micki was flying the jet back to the institute.

Quickly the dance was approaching and still Lily hadn't spoken a word to Morion. Everyday he would attempt to chase her around the institute hoping that eventually she would speak to him but with no luck. He wasn't even sure if Lily still considered herself his girlfriend. Today Morion didn't attempt to chase her around. He just sat downstairs flipping through the TV, trying to find something good to watch. As per usual, there was nothing. Just as he was about to cut off the TV, he felt someone sit down beside him. Guessing it was no one important, he threw the remote at them and got up to leave.

"So that's it?" a familiar voice asked.

He stopped and turned to face the girl who sat on the couch. "Lily?"

"So, I finally decide to talk to you and you're just gonna walk away? I see how it is." Lily tossed the remote down and stood up to walk away, only to be caught by Morion.

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize it was you."

"Oh, so now you don't even notice me anymore?" Lily pulled her hand away from him, but instead of just running away from him like she usually does, she just stood there glaring at him. "You know, I don't know what to do anymore Morion. Do you really care for me?" Lily's gaze softened and she took a step closer to him.

"Of course I do Lily." Morion sighed and took her hand in his, gently this time. "I wouldn't be with you if I didn't."

"Then why don't you want to go to the dance?" She searched his eyes for an answer.

"I just don't like dances."

Lily wanted to push him to go. She wanted to say how much she wanted him there, but chose not to push her luck. Instead she leaned against him, allowing him to wrap his arms around her. "It's okay then. I don't mind." Lily pulled away, smiling up at him. "I can just go with my friends. It will still be a lot of fun. I won't force you to go."

"Lily?"

"Morion, there's something about me."

"What?" Morion looked down at her a little confused.

"There's a dark secret buried deep in me. I don't know when, but one day I wish to tell you. You see, the secret has kept me from caring for anyone for maybe say two years. I never thought I could fall for anyone ever again, but here I am Morion, with you." Lily smiled leaning up and kissing him on the cheek. "If you ever have doubts, just think about that, okay?"

AN: Reviews People. I need REVIEWS!


	19. Chapter 19

AN: Sorry this chapter took so long for me to put up. I'd retyped it a while ago, but every time I was online I kept forgetting to post it. --" SORRY CLAIRE! I was so busy doing other things like playing Kingdom Hearts 2 or updating my site. But here it is finally and I hope you all enjoy it. Oh, and please review. PLEASE!

Chapter 19

_So here it was. The day of the dance. Of course, I still hadn't told Morion that I was going with Bobby. He'd probably go and kill Bobby for that, but what was I supposed to do? I was the head of the dance committee. I definitely couldn't go by myself. And besides, it's more fun with a date. I know. I know. It would hurt Morion to find out, but he should have come with me then… and don't worry. After the dance I plan on telling him that I went with Bobby. I doubt he'll take it well, but I guess he does EVENTUALLY deserve to know._

"Lily, did you check on the brownies?" Sakura asked. Lily nodded and pointed to a nice warm batch of brownies that sat on a large tray ready to be served. Lily then stuck a sheet of cookies into the oven. Sakura was over at another counter cutting up a strawberry cake into small square pieces.

"With us in the kitchen, everything is bound to be good," Lily commented. Sakura only laughed. "Keep an eye on the food. I'm going to check on the decorations." Sakura nodded and Lily headed out of the kitchen and into the dance room.

Lily smiled, amazed at what she saw. Her cousin and the other girls were doing a great job with the decorations. Blue and violet streamers were placed everywhere. At the stairs, since everyone would be coming down from their rooms, hung a sign saying "Midnight Stroll". To the right of the stairs was their snack table covered with a beautiful midnight blue tablecloth. Stars hung from the ceiling, as did a yellowish orange moon. Lily really felt like she was taking a midnight stroll. Small tables were set to the sides for the students to sit when they didn't feel like dancing. Each table had a candle set in the middle and a small vase of roses.

Lily stepped outside to see how that was coming along. From the door to the middle of the yard was a small path that led to a gazebo surrounded with flowers and candles. Speakers were set up around the doors so that the music would reach outside as well. Outlining the path was a trail of rose petals. Lily walked down the path once just to see how it felt. Being as it was still daylight outside it wasn't as romantic, but she was sure once night hit it would be as beautiful as it was meant to be.

Lily headed back inside and ordered Jubilee to set some tables outside as well. Jubilee and Rogue did just that, leaving Jen to finish up inside on her own. Lily finally returned to the kitchen, only to find Sakura slicing a chocolate cake and setting the pieces up nicely on three trays stacked neatly above each other. Lily called Kitty into the kitchen and the young girl helped Lily carry the snacks out onto the table.

After everything was set up, the girls all headed up to their rooms to get ready for the dance, all except Lily. Lily stopped at a door and knocked on it. Morion opened his door, allowing Lily to walk in. She sat on his bed and sighed.

"What's wrong? Don't you have a dance to get ready for?" Morion asked her, avoiding sitting next to her on the bed. "I'm not going. You already know it's pointless to ask, and besides, you already said that you wouldn't make me go."

"That's not why I'm here," Lily cut in. Morion finally faced her.

"Then why are you here?"

"I won't be with you all night. I wanted to come see you before I go have fun. You'll probably be the only one not going. You'll be lonely up here by yourself, won't you?"

"Your point? Being alone doesn't bother me."

"But it bothers me," said Lily, standing from her seat and walking over to him. "Why do you like to be along so much Morion?"

"That's just how I am," he simply answered her.

"Since you won't go to the dance with me, will you dance one dance with me here?"

"What?"

Lily walked over to his stereo and placed a CD in. Slow music drifted from his stereo throughout his room. "Please?" she pleaded with him. "Just one."

Morion sighed and pulled her close. "Just one," he breathed into her ear, "and that's it." She felt herself shiver from his soft lips brushing against her neck.

"Morion."

"Shh. I said I'd dance. Just be quiet."

Lily wanted to say something, but she had forgotten what. She rested her head against his shoulder and let him lead her around his room. She felt almost like she was floating. She held onto Morion tighter, almost afraid that if she didn't she'd fall. Morion only smiled. He leaned down and kissed her. The music finally ended, but Lily noticed that they didn't stop dancing. Slowly Morion moved her towards his bed.

"Morion?"

"Lily, I want to be with you."

"You are with me." She cupped his face in her hands. "You'll always be with me." Lily kissed him, but then noticed the time on the clock. "Oh no. I have to get ready for the dance. Thank you for dancing with me at least once Morion." She kissed him one last time and then ran out of the room. Morion cursed the face that Lily had something else to do and could not fulfill his need at the moment.

Lily rushed up to her room, throwing the door open. Her two roommates blinked, looking in her direction.

"Where were you?" Jen asked, handing her cousin a silk red dress.

"Yeah, I thought you'd never show," added Rogue.

"Sorry, I got caught up somewhere else," Lily quickly explained throwing her clothes off and slipping into her dress. She grabbed her brush and stood in front of the mirror.

"With Morion?" Jen asked, prodding into her cousin's mind.

"Jen!" Lily complained, but couldn't quite fight her cousin out at the moment being as she was in a hurry to get ready. Lily pulled her hair up, leaving a few stray pieces down and curling them. She took some rose shaped bobby pins and stuck them in her hair. Then she applied very little makeup on her face. Turning to her two roommates, they applauded her for such speedy yet perfect work. Lily grabbed her shoes and slipped them on while running down the hall.

"The dance starts soon, and we're supposed to be there first," Jen explained.

"I'm sorry," Lily apologized. The three girls ran down the stairs. They would have taken the elevators, but Xavier had shut them off for the day being as the girls had specifically said they want everyone to come down through the stairs. They reached the dance room, each gasping for breath.

"What took you three so long?" Kitty asked.

"Stuff," Lily answered, not wanting to explain to them. Jen pulled her cousin aside, searching her cousin's eyes.

"You almost…"

"Jen!" Lily practically shouted. "How far into my mind did you go?"

"Not far. It's pretty fresh. Seems you can't forget it." Jen grinned and moved away before her cousin could attack her.

"You just wait Jennifer Marie Mizuno. I know where you sleep." Lily then laughed maniacally.

"You seem to be having fun." Lily jumped and gripped at her chest, trying to calm her heart down. She turned to face Bobby. He only laughed at her. "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you."

"Sure you didn't," Lily pouted. Bobby was still laughing. Lights turned off, leaving the dance lights and the glow from the stars and moon to shine the room up. Lily linked her arm through Bobby's and pulled him to the side. "The other students should be arriving soon," Lily pointed out, and sure enough, here they came. Lily motioned to Mara who took her position next to the stairs and started taking pictures of everyone. On each side of the stairs stood Jen and Rogue who handed every guy a rose, who in turn handed it to a girl they cared for.

Lily slipped away from Bobby for a moment to go check on the DJ. Bobby took this chance to go retrieve a rose from Jen. Jen winked at him, telling him how this was his night with Lily and he should make the most of it. Bobby thanked Jen and headed over to go find Lily. After all the roses were gone, Jen and Rogue went to go find their dates.

Mara, since she had no date, just went around taking everyone's picture. She sighed, wishing that John could have come with her, but knew that it was impossible. When Jamie walked up and asked if she would dance with him, Mara only smiled and took his hand, allowing him to lead her out onto the dance floor. She laughed when Jamie bumped into someone and suddenly there were five Jamie's sprawled across the floor.

Jen wandered around, almost afraid that maybe Kurt wouldn't show for the dance until she felt someone tap her shoulder. She turned around to find a rose. She blinked and then saw that it was Kurt handing her a rose. She laughed and accepted it. She took his hand and he led her out onto the dance floor. Jen laughed again as Kurt twirled her around.

"Jen, there's something I've been wanting to ask you," he stated as he pulled her close to him.

"What is it? You know you can ask me anything," Jen encouraged him.

"Will you go out with me?"

Jen blinked and them smiled. "Silly. Of course I will." She laughed and brushed her lips softly against his.

Kurt let out a big sigh of relief and led Jen across the dance floor. She laughed as they twirled around over and over again. She wasn't sure when they'd stop but she hoped it wouldn't be soon.

Rogue sat to the side holding Colossus's hand. "Colossus, why won't you dance with me?" Rogue asked him.

"Well… I don't like dancing," he proclaimed.

"Oh really?" Rogue raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you sure it's not because you can't dance?"

"How did you…?"

Rogue blinked then laughed. "Come on, dance with me."

"But I can't. I don't want to," he started to protest, but Rogue just ignored him and pulled him out onto the dance floor.

"We came here to have fun and that's what we're going to do." She placed his hands on her waist and put hers on his shoulders. The two of them moved along with the music. "See? It's not that hard." Colossus blinked then smiled.

"I guess you win."

"Of course. I will always win." She winked and the two just danced.

"Lily, this was a great idea," Sakura told her friend. Lily only nodded. Everyone looked so happy and carefree. It made her happy knowing that she could do something so wonderful for so many people. "They're really enjoying themselves."

"I see that," Lily said to Sakura. She smiled at her friend and poured some punch into a cup. "It's better than I thought it would be."

"You just have a knack for this sort of thing," explained Bobby. Lily giggled.

"Back at home we had many dances and parties, and I always helped set them up. It was one of my favorite things to do."

"Where did you guys used to live?" Bobby asked.

Lily and Sakura looked at each other, both searching for an answer. Then they faced Bobby, both shouting, "Japan." They faced each other once more and burst out laughing. Obviously they had the same thought once again. Bobby stared at the two utterly confused. Lily would have spoken with Sakura more if it weren't for the fact that Lance ran over dragging Sakura away onto the dance floor. Lily smiled after the two and turned to face Bobby.

"So Bobby, what would you like to do now?" she asked him. Bobby took her hand and led her outside down to the gazebo. From there Lily gazed at the real stars and moon.

"They're beautiful." She twirled around the gazebo. Bobby took Lily's hand and pulled her close to him.

"No, you're beautiful," he said. Lily found herself blushing and tried to turn her gaze away from him till she heard him laughing. He pulled out the rose Jen had given him and handed it to Lily. Lily smiled, accepting the rose from him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and they danced under the moonlight, the music still playing loudly in the background.

"They're so cute together," Jen claimed from the door as she and Kurt watched her cousin dancing with Bobby. "I wish she'd chosen him over Morion."

"Well, you can't pick and chose for her," Kurt explained to Jen, holding her close to him. "It's up to Lily what she does with her life."

"I know," Jen said. "I just… I just don't want to see her get hurt again like last time."

"If she gets hurt it's not because of you," Kurt told her. "Everyone knows how much you try to protect your cousin, just as she tries to protect you. If she does get hurt again, then you can at least be there for her." Jen smiled, snuggling even closer to her boyfriend.

"Thanks Kurt."

Meanwhile, upstairs, Morion sat alone in his room, listening to the music that traveled up the stairs to the third floor. It was faint, but he could still hear it. He remembered how hurt Lily looked when he wouldn't go and then she had told him that he didn't have to. She might have said it was alright, but as hurt as she was, how could it be okay? Was he really the type of boyfriend to just let his girlfriend go to a dance alone? Sighing, Morion made up his mind.

Back down at the dance Mara was once again taking pictures. She noticed a figure looming at the top of the stairs and turned to take their picture as well, but froze when she saw who it was. She lowered her camera and knew she had to warn someone. Turning, she bumped into Sakura.

"It's too late," Sakura explained to the pink haired girl. "He saw."

"Damn." Mara turned her gaze back to the figure on the stairs.

There stood Morion. He had been searching for Lily. He thought maybe that she was hanging with her friends somewhere, but what he saw wasn't what he had expected. Through the window, he saw in the gazebo, was Bobby Drake dancing with his girlfriend. Glaring, he made his way down the stairs, across the dance floor, outside and to the gazebo.

At first Lily didn't notice Morion there because she had had her eyes closed while dancing, but when she opened her eyes she nearly jumped back in fright. There stood Morion and she could have sworn that he was on fire.

"Morion, what are you doing here?" Lily asked him, trying to push the deadly boy away from Bobby. "You said you didn't want to come."

"When you said it was okay I didn't come, I didn't expect him to be your date." Morion just stood there, fist clenched together. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Why? So you could prevent me from coming with anyone?" Now Lily was glaring back at him. "You really wanted me to just come with my friends? I don't believe you. God, I hate you right now." She turned away from him and took Bobby's hand. "You want to be jealous, fine. But I'm on a date right now and if you don't mind, I intend to finish it." She pulled Bobby away and headed back inside. Morion just stood there dumbfounded. Lily had just told him off. Was it really bad that he didn't want her with Bobby of all people? Was it a crime for her to come dateless? Morion shook his head and headed back up to his room. He shouldn't have even bothered to come.

"Lily," Bobby began, "you didn't really need to tell him off like that." Lily only shrugged and sat at a table.

"Yes Bobby, I did." She pulled Bobby down into a chair next to her. "I'm tired. I don't know what to do anymore. I try to understand him, but I just can't, and I guess at the same time he can't seem to understand me either. It makes me wonder about the two of us."

"Lily, are you happy with him?"

"Sometimes." Lily sighed and looked up at the glowing stars and moon. "When it's just me and him he can be so sweet and I love being around him. But other times, usually when there are other people around, he's so frustrating."

"I don't know what to tell you. Just, if he ever hurts you Lily, remember, I'm here for you." He squeezed her hand gently. Lily smiled and placed a kiss on his cheek.

"Thank you Bobby. That makes me really happy."

Later that night, after the dance, Lily made her way up to Morion's room. She stood there for a while knocking on his door, but he never answered her. Sighing, she sat there quietly in front of his door, refusing to leave. Without realizing it, Lily fell asleep. It was then that Morion finally opened his door and picked up the sleeping girl. Carefully he placed her on his bed.

"You idiot," he said, but gently placed a kiss on her forehead. Before he could move away, Lily grabbed his hand. She mumbled something but he wasn't quite sure what. He tried to get her to let go of him, but she wouldn't. He sighed and cautiously laid next to her, trying his best not to wake her. "You're lucky I love you." He held her close and fell asleep as well.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

_It was so weird. The dance had more drama than I expected and I never thought that Morion would show. He said he wouldn't come. Why was he there? I just couldn't for the life of me understand that boy._

Lily awoke the next morning in an unfamiliar setting. She tried to move but realized she was being held down. Trying not to freak out, slowly she turned over to see Morion. Lily blinked. What was she doing here in Morion's room? Then she remembered the night before. She must have fallen asleep in the hall. Smiling, she brushed off a stray hair on his face.

"You can be sweet sometimes." Without warning, Morion pulled her closer. Letting out a small squeal, Lily felt a blush creep onto her face. That blush disappeared as she heard Morion's heartbeat. It was so soothing. She snuggled even more into his embrace. Looking up to make sure he was still asleep, Lily placed a kiss on his cheek.

"You're such an idiot, yet I still fell for you." Lily sighed and buried her face into his chest, loosing herself to her memories. "You're so different, yet you still remind me of him."

She felt Morion move. "Of who?" Good. He really was awake.

"My fiancé."

"You have a fiancé?" Morion practically shouted, trying to push her away.

"Had!" she said through tears. "I HAD a fiancé!"

Morion stopped pushing her away and instead held her close, brushing his hand through her hair. "I'm sorry." He tried to soothe her tears but nothing seemed to work. His best bet was just to let her cry, and so he did. He never had to do this before, so he was a little uncomfortable, but he held her close anyway. "I'm sorry Lily. I…"

Lily leaned up and kissed him. "Don't ever leave me. I don't want to be alone again. Please," she begged him. "I don't want to go through that again. Not like that." Lily held onto him for dear life. It was as if life would end if she parted with him. Morion wasn't sure what to think. It hurt him to see Lily this way.

"Please don't cry Lily. I promise I won't leave you!" Morion didn't make promises, but he meant this one. "Please." He was on the brink of tears. What happened in Lily's past to hurt her this much? "It's okay."

After some time Lily's tears died down. She lay there silent and immobile for quite a while. Morion was starting to get worried until she sat up.

"I have to get back to my room or else my cousin will be worried." Lily climbed over Morion to get up and slipped on her shoes.

"People will wonder why you're still in your dress," Morion pointed out. Lily blinked and looked at her dress. Grinning, she took the end of her dress. Morion raised an eyebrow in question at her. She winked then ripped her dress from the knee down. The dress was now slanted from her right mid thigh to her left knee. She pulled her hair out and let it fall to her waist. Morion had never seen it so wavy before.

"Now it looks like an everyday ensemble for me."

Morion shook his head, amazed that his girlfriend could do such a thing. "Wasn't that an expensive dress?"

"Yup, and now I can wear it whenever I want." Lily grabbed her bag, humming as she walked out the door.

"Lily, is that your dress from last night?" Jen questioned her cousin. Lily only smiled at her and plopped down onto her bed. "The things you do. I swear."

"What? You don't like it?" Lily pouted.

"That's the thing," Jen began. "I do. Want to fix my dress for me?" Lily started laughing.

"Remind me later. I have to get to class now." Lily threw her books into her bag and ran out of the room. Jen just tisked her cousin. How did Lily do it?

"Hello Pietro. Welcome to my institute for Mutants," Xavier greeted. "Please, feel free to make yourself at home."

Pietro examined the large office then smiled at Xavier. "So how much do you know?"

"Not much truthfully. Just enough. I know who you are and just recently I learned who your father is. You have a sister?"

Pietro scowled and nodded. "I couldn't save her."

"It's alright," Xavier assure him. "I will do everything I can to save your sister."

"Thank you sir," said Pietro with much gratitude. Xavier then assigned Pietro a room and sent him on his way. Scott had offered to show Pietro where his room was, but Pietro said he'd find it on his own. It would give him an excuse to explore the institute.

"Lily, I don't care. Let evil befall the whole universe for all I care," Kat told her friend. Lily sighed and threw a candy wrapper at her. "Very mature," Kat commented and took Lily's book.

"Hey, I was reading that!" Lily pouted.

"Well, now I am. Too bad for you."

"Hey guys. What's going on?" asked Bobby, as he followed Rogue into the room. Rogue started rummaging around in the closet for something.

"Not much Bobby. Hey Rogue, check under your bed," Lily suggested.

"Why?" But Rogue did just that even without Lily's answer, and there she found her boots. Glaring at Lily, she just slipped them on and left. Lily shrugged and turned to Bobby.

"So what brings you here?"

"Actually, Professor Grey wanted me to deliver you a message. She says that you have no practice today, but tomorrow you are to report to her office for another mission."

Blinking, Lily asked, "What time?"

"Nine a.m."

"But that requires me getting up at eight," Lily began to whine. "Tomorrow is Sunday. I don't get up till noon on Sundays."

Bobby shrugged. "Don't know what to tell ya. I'm just the messenger."

"Gah!" Lily fell back on her bed. She could hear Kat trying to suppress a laugh.

"Hey, think of it this way," Bobby started, "I'm going too."

Lily suddenly felt better about this mission, though she wasn't sure why. Sitting up, she smiled at Bobby. "I guess that does make things better." Then she had a thought. "Bobby, who's the leader for this mission?"

"Um, well, ya see, I was avoiding telling you that so I'm gonna…" He started heading towards the door until…

"Bobby…"

"Professor Grey!" Then he bolted out the door. Down the hall he could hear Lily's scream.

"No! I won't! I just won't!" Lily shouted.

"Oh I wish I could go on this mission just to see you suffer," Kat said, very pleased that Lily would be taking orders from Jean.

Lily threw a pillow at Kat and was very happy when it hit her in the face. Kat glared at Lily. "I hate Jean," Lily complained. "She gets on my nerves. Yeah, Scott is worse than her, but still… Grr. It's bad enough I have to listen to her at practice and in class, but on a mission?"

"Oh, get over it already," said Kat, throwing the pillow back at Lily. "It's not like it's the end of the world."

"Yes it is!" Lily buried her face into her pillow and screamed once more.

"God, you're such a spaz." She quickly ducked a flying pen targeted at head.

"Oh!" Lily then remembered something. "Speaking of which, that reminds me. Why won't you help with the war?"

"The only thing I had to look forward to was killing Angel. Of course, everyone said that should be left to you. Unfortunately, I agree."

Lily blinked then grinned. "Aw, you do care."

"Shut up."

The next morning Lily woke early and headed towards the girls' shower room. There she stumbled across Amara. "Amara? What are you doing up here? Isn't your room the next floor down?"

"Um… uh… nothing." Amara shoved her way past Lily. Confused and curious, Lily shrugged it off and continued on her way to the showers. She stopped when she saw Morion standing in front of the door and pulled her robe tightly around her.

"Morion, what are you doing her?"

"Nothing." He looked Lily up and down. "Nice look." Lily's face flushed beet red. "I hear you're going on the mission for Jean."

"So?"

"I hear Bobby Drake is going too."

"God, don't start." Lily tried to find her way past him into the shower room. "Morion, move."

"I don't trust him."

"Well, I do. Now move."

"I don't care if you do." His eyes flew wide open in shock when Lily slapped him.

"My God Morion, do you not have any faith in me at all? I think I can handle being around Bobby without you around. He's my friend. I'm tired of this jealousy. It's okay sometimes, but you're not jealous. You're possessive. It's like you're obsessed or something." She shoved her way past him into the shower room. Slipping her robe off, she stepped into a shower stall, letting the hot water flow around her.

She leaned against the wall, trying to calm herself. She fell to the ground on her knees. She closed her eyes and let herself scream, flames rising all around her. There was a sizzling as the water tried to fight off her flames. Finally she allowed herself to take a deep breath and the flames died down. She was tired of Morion. This wasn't the type of relationship she was hoping for. She knew she couldn't be happy with him, but something still drew her to him. She wanted to leave him, but it was impossible. Though he always made her angry, he still found ways to make her feel better.

Lily finished up her shower. She pulled on her robe and wrapped her hair in a towel. She turned to make her way out the door when Morion appeared. She jumped back, startled. "God, give me a warning next time. Why are you still here? You don't belong in here."

"Lily, I'm sorry."

"Yeah right. You don't know the meaning of sorry." Lily tried to shove past him, but he pushed her into a shower stall. He leaned down and kissed her. At first Lily tried to fight him off, but eventually she gave in. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. It wasn't until he started moving his hands to under her robe that caused her to push him away. She pulled her robe tightly around herself.

"What?" he asked. "Does it bother you that much?"

"Right now is not the time," she tried to explain.

"Don't give me an excuse. You care for me, right? Why do you keep distancing yourself from me?" he shot at her. She winced, looking away from him.

"I'm sorry. I don't mean to. I'm just not ready."

"Not ready? Or don't want to?"

"They're the same thing!" she shouted at him.

"No they're not! Who are you always thinking about Lily? Tell me!" Morion demanded. He was tired of trying to pull her attention to him. He didn't want to feel like he didn't really matter anymore. He wanted to know how she truly felt.

"Someone…" Lily couldn't bring herself to say his name. It hurt too much.

"Do you love him?"

"Yes, I do. I will always love him, but it doesn't matter. It will never matter." Lily tried to keep her gaze away from Morion. She had started crying. This was something that she never wanted to talk about.

"Who is he? Is it that ex-fiancé of yours?" Morion asked, ignoring her tears.

"Yes, it is." She wanted to leave and get away from him, but Morion continued blocking her way out.

"God, if you love him that much then just return to him. Leave me alone damn it."

"Fine! You want me dead that much?" Lily was shouting louder than he'd remembered her ever doing before. "Fine! Give me a knife or something. I'll end my life right now. Better yet, let me to go to a window. We are several stories up. I'd be dead the moment I hit the ground."

"Wait! Lily, stop. What are you talking about?"

"Dieing! Returning to him. That's what I was talking about. Though he'd be very mad at me." Lily started laughing. She was hysterical. "I mean, he did give his life for me. What better way to reward him than with my life?"

"Stop it!" Morion had slapped her. It wasn't until after the fact that he'd realized what he'd just done. "I'm sorry. I…"

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Instead of sad tears, Lily now cried tears of anger. "How dare you hit me."

"I said I was sorry."

"Sorry sorry sorry. Anyone can say sorry, but do they really mean it?" Lily asked. "I'm tired of always hearing sorry." Lily shook her head and looked up at Morion. "I don't think this is really working out."

"What do you mean?" Morion grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her. "You can't break up with me. Do you know what you're doing?"

"Loosing the stress."

"Please Lily. Don't do this."

"Morion, I'm tired." She tore her gaze away from his. "I don't think I can do this anymore."

"No, you can't. Lily, I love you." Lily's eyes widened. Never had she heard him say those words before. She didn't even think it was possible for him. Like she could deal with love? She hadn't heard those words since that incident.

"Don't say that," she said so quietly Morion had to strain himself to hear her. "Please. I don't know what to do when you say that."

"Lily, I finally got you. I don't know what to do if I lose you."

"STOP!" She placed her hands over her ears. Morion had to pry them off.

"Listen to me. I'll say it over and over. I love you Lily. I love you."

"Why are you doing this to me?" She choked back a sob. "You can't love me. It's not possible. Not after what I did. No!" She tried to fight her way past him, but he kept her pressed up against the wall.

"Whatever happened back then Lily is over. Forget about it."

"I can't. I might forget him then. I can't. I refuse to." Morion pulled Lily tightly against him. She was shaking. "What do you want from me?" Lily asked him, crying into his shirt. "Can't you ever just leave me alone? Why are you always making me cry? I thought I was done crying, but then I met you and Bobby. I hate the both of you. I don't want to cry anymore. That was the last time."

Morion pushed her back slightly and leaned down, kissing her softly. Lily returned the kiss. This time when he slipped his hand under her robe she just allowed him to. Would it be okay? Could she handle it?

On her way back to her room, Lily was in a daze. She couldn't believe what had just happened. She shook her head and stepped into her room, shutting the door behind her. She sunk to the floor. What had she just done? She was in shock. Pushing herself up, she made her way over to her cousin's bed, plopping herself right next to her cousin. Jen continued to sleep. Desperate to talk to her cousin, Lily started shaking her. Jen brushed Lily's hand away and rolled the other way, continuing to sleep. Frustrated, Lily pulled Jen's pillow from her and slammed it down on her. Jen, startled, jumped up, banging her head on the bottom of Lily's bed. Rubbing her head, she glared at her cousin.

"It's too early. What do you want?" Jen stopped glaring when she saw the dazed look on her cousin's face. "Lily?"

"I did it."

"Did wha-?" Jen blinked. "WHAT?" Her eyes widened. "Are you serious?" Lily nodded. "How do you feel?"

"I… I don't know. I'm kind of confused."

Jen grinned. "Was it good?"

Suddenly Lily found herself smiling. "Oh yeah. Better than good." She giggled. "I'm sorry I woke you. Go back to sleep."

"Good!" Jen took her pillow and pulled the cover over her head, falling right back to sleep.

Lily changed into some decent clothes and made her way downstairs to Jean's office. Looking around, she saw the people on this mission were Jen, herself, Bobby, Micki, Storm, Nightcrawler and Scott. Lily almost gagged seeing the two people she hated the most.

"Good to see you Lily," Jean greeted her. "You ready for this mission?"

"Sure, why not?" said Lily, the biggest smile planted on her face. She walked over to her friends and took a seat between Bobby and Nightcrawler.

"You're all probably wondering why you're here," Jean started. She looked around the room, probably expecting to get some response from somebody… anybody. Lily almost laughed at her till she caught Jean's gaze and threw that laugh away. "We're going to war."

"With who?" Micki asked.

"White Queen," Scott answered.

"Emma Frost," Lily questioned.

"But…" started Bobby.

"That's right, two of you already know of White Queen," Jean interrupted. "She's a tough enemy, but together I think we stand a chance."

"No!" Lily almost shouted. "Last time she almost killed us. Both her and Angel. You think we can just beat her like that? My team was there for weeks and we still couldn't stand up to her. We know more about her than you ever will. Even Nightcrawler knows." She caught the look on Jean's face. "Judging by the fact that you said 'two' you must not have known of Nightcrawler's mission. He was delivering information between me and Professor Xavier. You don't know what you're going up against. I don't want to go."

"I agree with Lily," started Bobby. "If you knew what…"

"You're just kids," Jean cut in. "We'll be with you this time. It will work. Trust us. And this Angel… he can't be that tough."

"Damn it! Are you listening to me?" Lily was standing now. "You think Angel will be easy? I've known Angel most my life. Don't think he's that easy. God, you people are so full of yourselves."

Lily felt someone touch her hand gently and she turned to face Storm. "It's okay Lily. I'm not saying we know what we're doing or that we will definitely win, but the least we can do is try."

Lily wanted to argue with her, to tell her it was stupid, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. Lily really liked Storm and at least she wasn't trying to be so sure of everything. Lily nodded her head and sat back down with her friends. Looks like they were going on this mission. Taking a deep breath, Lily said, "Let's go."


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

_Here we were going to what I thought was our death. I couldn't believe it. They weren't even trying to train us for this either. We just got to jump right into the battle. Worst off, it was a battle with Angel. Last thing I wanted to do was fight with Angel. I wasn't ready for that. What was I getting myself into? I wanted to go back home to Mars._

Lily was following her team down to the jet when she was stopped by Amara. The adults went ahead, leaving Lily and her friends to talk to Amara really quick.

"What's wrong Amara?" Lily looked at her friend, worried because it looked like Amara had run to tell her something important.

"Lily, you'll never believe this. I don't want you to hate me, but I think you should know this," Amara got out between deep breaths.

"What is it? You can tell me anything. What's wrong?"

"It's Morion." Lily's eyes widened and she wasn't sure if she wanted to hear this. "He's… he's working for Magneto."

"W-what?" Lily tried smiling. "That can't be possible."

"It is." Amara looked up at Lily with such sad eyes, Lily wasn't sure what to think or do.

"How did…"

"I overheard him talking on the phone with someone and he was being very quiet about it. I was just leaving a friend's room. He mentioned Magneto in his conversation. When he saw me he quickly hung up and asked if I overheard anything. I told him no, that I had just opened my friend's door when he saw me. Afterwards I left quickly to come find you." Lily was too shocked to even react. "I'm sorry Lily. I didn't want to tell you, but you deserve to know more than anyone."

"Thank you Amara," said Bobby, taking Lily's hand. "We have to go now." Bobby led Lily away, Micki and Nightcrawler following closely behind. Bobby tried getting Lily's attention but she was in a far off world now. If it was true, Bobby would kill Morion for lying to Lily. But if that was the case, why was Morion with Lily then? If Morion knew they were destined to be enemies why did he choose to still be with her?

"Is she okay?" Storm asked, leading Lily to her seat.

"I hope so," Bobby answered. "Otherwise someone's gonna die."

"Should I ask?"

"It's not my business to tell."

"I understand."

"No you don't," Lily said quietly. "No one understands…"

"It's just the same," Micki commented.

"The same as what?" Nightcrawler wanted to know.

"When we return there's a story I want to tell. I need Morion there."

Bobby and Nightcrawler traded glances but just shrugged their shoulders and said nothing more the whole ride to Emma's school.

"Emma!" Storm flew in the sky, rain pouring all around and clouds rumbling loudly. Lightening flashed all around. The wind was strong. Lily held onto Bobby, almost afraid that if she allowed it, she would fly away. Emma stepped out of the school, Angle right by her side.

"Well, if it isn't the X-Men," she shouted over the storm. "What brings you here?"

"We're here to get rid of you once and for all," Jean answered her.

Lily stepped up to Jean and pointed. "I want Angel." Jean nodded. More of Emma's students stepped out. The X-Men got ready for their battle. Lily stepped up, hoping to strike Angel before he spread his wings and flew off, but was stopped by someone's gaze who stepped in front of her. Lily found herself paralyzed. Wondering what happened, Lily tried to examine the figure that stood in front of her. He had raven hair and purple eyes. Immediately Lily knew who he was.

_KEITH!_ She shouted into his mind. Keith winced from the pain, but smiled.

"Good to see you again Lily." Keith held his gaze with her, until he flew back into a wall. Lily was freed from her paralysis. Once again, she went to attack Angel when Diamond stepped in front of her.

"Long time no see Lily."

"Diamond." Lily grinned. "Oh, if I don't kill you I'll tell Kat. She'd be more than happy to kill one of her ex's."

"You can both try." Diamond raised his hand and beam of light shot out of it. Lily, expecting this, dodged to the side, watching the beam hit the door, incinerating it. She looked back at Diamond.

"You always had a thing for destroying everything. Isn't that why the Pluto Royal Family disowned you?" She dodged another beam of light, this time allowing it to incinerate one of White Queen's students. "But I guess that's why they call you destroyer. Tell me Destroyer, did you have to rely on someone else to get to Earth?" She laughed as she dodged another beam of light. "You need to work on your aim Destroyer." She got ready to throw a fireball at him when a beam of red light hit Diamond sending him into a tree. Lily looked over at Scott, glaring.

"Enough games Fire Storm."

"Who's playing games?" Lily growled and made her way over to Angel. "Hello Sin, we meet again."

"Good to see you alive and well Fire Storm."

"I was hoping you'd be dead by now," Lily commented, "but I guess I'm shit out of luck. That's too bad for me." Lily started gathering a fireball in her hand. "So we gonna do this or not?"

"Let's." Angel spread his wings, but before he could fly into the air, Lily threw the fireball at his wing, burning it so much he had to put them away.

"Oops. I'm sorry. Did that hurt?"

"Only a lot." Angel glared and teleported himself behind her. As he reached for her, Lily's whole body lit up in flames, burning Angel's hands. He growled and jumped back. Lily turned to face him, grinning.

"Gee Sin, you're not having a good day today, are you?"

"Gotten wise I see."

Lily sneered. "I've been wise."

"Then how could you not see what would happen to your beloved?" Again, like before, Angel called upon a certain form. It hovered in front of Lily.

"Damn it Angel, why can't you just fight fair?" Slowly, tears fell down Lily's cheeks. She quickly brushed them away.

"I've never fought fair Lily. Do you remember what happened back then?"

Lily fell to her knees, unable to speak or react. Memories flooded her mind, sending her back in time to when she was happy and sad and hurt. This was the time where she was in love. Life was perfect… except for Angel. He had destroyed everything. Her life. Her happiness. Her love.

"Stop it… JUST STOP IT!" Lily tore through Duo's form and lunged at Angel, knocking him back into a tree. Lily kicked and screamed and punched at him, not once stopping. Angel tried desperately to block her angry moves, but Lily just kept going. Angry tears flooded Lily's eyes, blocking her sight, but she could sense him, sense where he was and so she just kept attacking.

"I hate you!" she shouted as loudly as possible. Suddenly a dark aura surrounded Lily and she found herself suffocating. She dropped to the ground, fighting for air.

"Naughty Lily, beating up on guys." Lily looked to her side and watched as a girl with black waist length hair and sliver bangs to her shoulders walked up to her. Her eyes were a sad grey. "Remember me?"

Lily glared and answered in her mind, _Livia._

"Amazing… all this time on Earth and you still remember everyone from the other planets." Livia kneeled down in front of Lily.

"Lily!" A wall of ice rose in between of the two girls, and Lily was freed of the black aura. She gasped for air, grateful for Bobby's interference. Bobby ran over and helped her up. "Are you okay?" Lily nodded.

"I'm fine. Thanks."

"Lily," Micki called out to her. "More are coming. We were told to retreat."

"What?" Lily shouted furiously. "First they order us to come out here and fight even though we all agree we're not ready and suddenly they want to retreat?" Lily let out a scream of anger. "I hate them. Damn it." She took Bobby's hand and followed Micki back to the jet.

"Just what were you thinking?" Lily shouted at Jean. "You order us to come to a war because you all can't sit around patiently anymore even though you know we're not ready for this. You toss us out there and now you're mad because we were basically the losing side? I don't understand you!"

"Don't you dare talk to me like that young lady."

"I will do what I want when I want and right now I want to yell at you about your stupidity. It's not our fault we weren't ready for this war. Technically neither were you. You just wanted to jump out and get some action going. You want to get yourselves killed, fine by me. I hate you anyway, but don't throw our lives out there as well. I'm not accepting anymore missions from you ever!"

"Lily's right," Micki agreed. "I saw four people there that I recognized. Three of them are not people you would like to deal with. You know who I speak of, right Lily?"

Lily nodded. "Jean, before going into battle next time get your details first."

"Well, that was your job when you first went there, wasn't it?"

"And I did my mission last time, but it's been a while. It's most likely that they would have new allies. Did you ever think of that?" Lily shot back.

"Of course I did."

"Then why didn't you ever look into it?"

"I…" But Jean never answered.

"Whatever." Lily took her seat and waited until they arrived back at the institute.


	22. Chapter 22

-1Chapter 22

_Okay, so I was pissed. What Jean did was wrong. Unfortunately, that wasn't the end of things to go bad. Seriously, I never wanted to believe it, but thing really were that bad._

Lily stormed out of the jet and up the stairs to the institute. Bobby followed closely behind.

"Lily, where are you going?" Bobby asked her.

"Don't know, don't care. Away from this place, and stupid teachers, like Jean and Scott."

"Well slow down. I'll come with you."

Lily stopped abruptly, almost causing Bobby to slam into her. She took a deep breath then resumed walking, only a little calmer this time. Bobby walked right beside Lily, taking her hand in his. They made it halfway to the gate when Morion stepped in front of the two.

"Lily, what are you doing with him?"

"He's my friend Morion. Leave me alone." Lily pulled Bobby along around Morion.

"No, I won't leave you alone." Morion grabbed Lily's hand, pulling her away from Bobby. "I don't want to see you with him."

"Hey jerk, Lily can hang out with whoever she wants to," Bobby shouted.

"You stay out of this. This is between me and her."

"Stop it!" Lily stamped her foot down, catching both boy's attention. "Don't… and I mean don't EVER tell me what I can and can't do." Lily was glaring at Morion. "That's the worst mistake you could ever make."

"Lily… I…" Lily yanked her hand of Morion's and reached for Bobby, avoiding Morion's gaze. "Lily…"

"Don't ever act like you own me Morion." Lily looked once more at Morion and he could see a flash of fire in her eyes.

"Lily… please…"

"Leave her alone!" Bobby stepped between Lily and Morion.

"You stay out of this!" The ground began to shake from under Bobby. He stumbled back searching for something to grab onto.

Lily, who was beginning to get angry, stepped in front of Morion. Flames flashed all around her, her eyes turning a fire red. "Delotha!" The ground stopped shaking and Morion was now staring at Lily. She had called him by his mutant name. She never did that unless she really had to. "You know, I never realized until now just how much that name really does suit you. That's all you're full of. Hate… lots of it… and anger. Hate and anger. I'm tired of this. I can't deal with you anymore. What next? Will I find out you really are working for Magneto?"

"Who told you that?"

"Answer me!" she shouted, angry tears burning her cheeks. "Damn it! Don't make me do it."

"Then do it."

Glaring, Lily searched his mind, finding what she was searching for. Her flames died and she collapsed to her knees. "Why?'

"Lily?" Jen ran over. She had been close by, reading a book, when she'd heard all the commotion. Noticing it involved her cousin, Jen immediately ran over. Jen glared at Morion. "How dare you put her through this again?"

"Through what?" Finally Morion had had enough of Lily and her stupid secrets. "What is so bad that Lily went through to cause her so much pain."

"You want to know?" Slowly, Lily turned her gaze up to Morion. "You really want to know that badly?" Lily stared up at him, deep into his eyes. Morion wanted to turn away, but Lily's burned deep into his. She rose from the ground, holding his gaze. "Let me tell you a story..."

_Lily was out with her cousin, laying on the Mercury courtyard. They were gazing up at clouds, pointing out funny shapes that they made. The two girls laughed, until Angel, one of the most popular boys at their royal school on the moon approached them._

_"Hello ladies." The two girls laughed and stood from their positions on the ground._

_"Well, now if it isn't Sin," Lily commented. "Come to cause some chaos on Mercury today?"_

_"Me? Cause chaos?" Angel tisked. "How dare you accuse me of such things?"_

_"That's right Lily. That's too soft on him. It's more like wreaking havoc," Jen commented. Lily laughed._

_"Hey, that's not very nice."_

_"And neither are you," Lily pointed out. Angel only shrugged._

_"Jen!" Ami called out to her daughter. "Jen, will you please come down here?"_

_"Hai!" she heard her daughter call from up the stairs. A moment later Jen was standing in front of Ami, wondering what her mother could possibly want._

_"I have something to tell you."_

_"Alright…" Jen gave her mother a funny look, but shrugged and sat down. "Go on…"_

_"You're engaged."_

_"What?" Jen blinked in confusion. "To who?"_

_"Who else?"_

_"Angel?" Ami nodded. Jen's eyes widened. "You mean he actually went and asked for your permission?" Once again Ami nodded. "And you… and Dad both gave your consent?"_

_"Congratulations Honey."_

_"Oh thank you Mom."_

_"Of course Dear. We just want you to be happy." Ami added one last thing._

_"Have you spoken to your cousin lately?" Angel was sitting next to Lily, both watching a movie in class. Lily shook her head._

_"No, we've been so busy. You know, Princess Duties." Lily sighed. "They really suck. Actually… just being a princess sucks. Not to mention this year me and Jen have different classes. Which sucks even more." Lily, bored with the movie, opened up a book. "I probably won't get to talk to her for a while."_

_"I see…" Angel looked down at Lily. "Hey, can I ask you a question?"_

_"Ask away."_

_"Will you go out with me?"_

_Lily blinked and had to cover up a laugh. "I'd have to say no. I'm a little picky about guys. And anyway, aren't you and my cousin together?"_

_"No, that's over with. I like you now, Lily."_

_"I'm sorry Angel, but no." Lily got up from her seat as the bell rang. "I still don't like you like that. You're a friend, and nothing more."_

_It was Jen's birthday ball, and the two girls finally got to see each other. Their duties were put on hold for a few months so they decided now was the time to catch up. They stood out on the balcony, talking about their families and their duties that they had been performing lately. They both complained about how much they hated being princesses._

_"So anyway, guess what!" Jen started, but was stopped when she heard her mother announcing something from inside. Curious, the two girls headed back inside to see the speech. Ami stood up on the throne._

_"I have an announcement to make. We've been waiting to tell everyone all at once."_

_"Oh!" Jen gasped._

_"Jen?" Lily looked at her cousin a little confused. "What's going on?"_

_"My daughter…" Ami continued her speech, "is engaged… to Prince Angel of Saturn."_

_Lily blinked and then shouted, "No!"_

_"Lily honey, is something wrong?" Ami asked._

_"That can't be…"_

_"And why is that?" Jen asked Lily, quite angry at her cousin's sudden outburst._

_"Angel said it was over with you. Jen, he asked me out. Of course I refused him, but that means that he was trying to cheat on you."_

_"I would have ended it Lily if you'd have just said yes." Angel had now appeared in front of everyone on the throne._

_"But you…"_

_"Leave us alone." Lily turned to her cousin, surprised that Jen was on her side. "What game do you think you're pulling here? Forget it, I'm not marrying a jerk like you."_

_"Fine, if I can't have you then I at least want Lily." He walked down to Lily and took her hand into his. "We can be together forever."_

_"Eww… get away from me."_

_"Don't talk to me like that. Don't you see it? We're meant for one another."_

_"Hey, you heard her. Get away from her." The crowd turned to allow a young prince with a beautiful brown braid and gorgeous cobalt eyes walk towards Lily. He took Lily's other hand ad gracefully pulled her away from Angel and into his embrace. "Are you okay Lily?"_

_Lily blinked, her heart beating a mile a minute. Where had he come from? "You're Duo… right?" she asked almost in a whisper. Duo smiled and nodded._

_"I am."_

_"You go to my school. You're a grade ahead."_

_Duo laughed. "Someone's been doing their homework."_

_"It's not…" Lily felt a bush creep onto her face. "You're the class president. Everyone knows you." Quickly she pushed away from him, trying to hide her blush. Duo turned back to Angel._

_"You stay away from her, understand?"_

_"Or what pretty boy? What do you expect to do to me?" Angel turned his gaze to Lily. "You will be mine, whether you like it or not."_

_"Lily, I would like you to meet your bodyguard, Duo." Lily eyes widened as the young boy walked into the large room._

_"Hello Lily, it seems we meet again." Duo gently took Lily's hand and placed a soft kiss upon it. Once again Lily felt that blush. What was it about this boy that made her heart flutter so?_

_"Hello Duo, it is good to see you again." She smiled. "Thank you for last time."_

_"It's my pleasure." Duo looked to Lily's father. "Don't worry Sir. I'll take good care of your daughter. You have nothing to worry about. Angel won't lay a hand on her." And Duo kept to his word. Angel never came anywhere near Lily. Duo was with Lily every chance he had. Even the little bit of time between classes at school. And when Lily was with her friends, Duo kept his distance but made sure that Lily was still in his sight._

_As time went by Lily realized how much she really cared for Duo. Granted, before the incident at the party, Lily had always had a thing for Duo. She was always too shy to speak to him, which surprised everyone because Lily spoke to just about anyone._

_One day, Duo announced his feelings for Lily and requested that he be allowed to marry her. Of course, Lily's parents granted him permission._

_"It's finally here," Lily said. "My wedding day."_

_"Congratulations cuz dear." Jen was in the back helping Lily get ready for her wedding. But just as they got the dress on, there was a loud crash outside and the two girls ran out to find out what was going on._

_Angel flew high into the air, Duo following right after him. Dark balls of energy flew from Duo's hands towards Angel._

_"No!" Lily shouted up after them. Gathering up her dress she ran after them. It was her wedding day. It couldn't be destroyed like this. Everything that she had worked so hard for, that she had dreamed about, was all being destroyed. Angry, she sent a ball of fire up at Angel, burning both his wings. Angel fell and Duo landed right next to her._

_"Lily!"_

_"Duo you idiot!"_

_"Lily, how dare you!" Angel shouted at her. "I love you."_

_"No you don't." Lily grabbed Duo's sword from his sheath and ran after Angel. "I want you out of my life."_

_"Lily, no." Duo tried to stop her, but was too late. She swung at Angel but he dodged easily. Angel then teleported to behind Lily and slid a knife right up to her neck. "Damn it Angel, let her go."_

_"No! She's mine. You can't have her. I won't let you." Angel then threw her off a cliff. Lily landed on some rocks. She tried to stand but fell back down._

_"Lily!" Duo flew after her. He landed right next to her and helped her stand. "Baby are you okay?"_

_Lily nodded. "But Angel…"_

_"Don't worry, I'll get him." Duo then flew off again, leaving Lily behind to keep her out of danger._

_"Duo!"_

"When I was finally rescued, I'd found out that Duo had been killed trying to fight Angel. Angel had supposedly teleported and snuck up behind Duo and stabbed him with his own sword." Lily, finished with the story, finally broke her gaze from Morion. He stumbled back, unsure of what had happened. It wasn't like Lily just told the story. It was as if he had actually seen it all. "Morion, I'm breaking up with you and there's nothing you can do this time." Lily then turned and walked away.

AN: I hope you all enjoyed that story. Just to let you know though, because I actually have to start thinking up ideas from here on, being as what I've posted so far, I'd already had written, now I have to write up new ideas and I need inspiration. I refuse to post new chapter without reviews. Thank you for reading this far, and I hope I continue to do well enough for all of you to continue reading.


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

_It had finally happened. I had finally left Morion. I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. Maybe this is what I needed all this time. Sure, being with Morion was great, but at the same time it was so hard and painful. I just wasn't sure how much more I could take. And then when I'd found out about him working for Magneto… That was the last straw. I wasn't going to play his games anymore._

"Damn it!" Michel slammed his fist on his control panel, unsure of what to do now. He was starving, but he had run out of food and he wasn't sure when was the next time he'd get to land on some other planet. Raising from his seat, he glanced down at what was a picture of Sage. Ever since that day he'd landed on Venus, when he'd first laid eyes on her, he was in love. Now he traveled around in search for her. He had announced his love for her but she had refused him. That didn't change anything though. Michel would win her love.

"Has anyone seen Lily lately?" Tal had asked her friends. They all shook their heads. It had been a week since Lily had left Morion and there was no sign of her to be found anywhere.

"She hasn't even returned to the dorm lately," Jen explained. "I know you're worried, but this is just a Lily thing. She needs to be on her own right now."

Tal sighed. "I know, but I still can't help but worry." Tal stood from the ground and poked Mara, who was hanging in a tree. Mara only growled at Tal and climbed higher up.

"Worrying will give you wrinkles dear sister." Tal spun to face her sister.

"What are you doing here Sage?"

Sage only shrugged and leaned against the tree that Mara had climbed up in. "Just came to see how you were doing."

"Or cause trouble." Tal grabbed her bag and headed off to class. "I'll see you all later."

"Such a loving sister, isn't she?"

"What are you really here for?" Micki asked Sage.

"Truthfully? I've come to find Morion."

"I doubt that Morion will want to talk to you."

"Come to think of it, Morion hasn't talked to anyone lately," Jen pointed out. "I mean, not that he ever talked to anyone before, but now it's a little different. And he barely shows up for classes."

"Hm…" Micki nodded. "I heard he was leaving the institute."

"It's no surprise," stated Mara. "He wasn't liked before, now he's hated even more." Mara finally jumped out of her tree and landed next to Micki. She then turned her gaze towards Sage. "Basically the point is, don't expect to find him, and if you do, don't expect to really be able to talk to him." Mara then picked up her bag. "Mara is late for class. Mara will talk to you all later."

Sage let out an exasperated sigh. "Darn."

"What's the matter Sage? Disappointed?"

"Me? Disappointed?" Sage laughed. "Like that could ever happen. So things didn't go the way I planned. There's always next time. See ya!"

Lily sat in a small hotel room, eyes red from crying so much. She hadn't wanted to remember it, but she had to make Morion understand. When she had drawn Morion into her mind to see what happened, she too had relived the whole incident. She hadn't wanted to feel such pain ever again, but there it was, buried deep inside her. Could she ever truly break free from the past?

She tried to roll out of the bed, but her energy had been drained from crying so much. Now she just felt empty. She knew her friends were worried, but she couldn't return there yet. And if they were really worried, they would have found her by now.

Amara hummed softly to herself as she walked down the hall. As she approached Morion, a grin slowly appeared on her face. "Too bad for you. Looks like you've lost the one person you truly cared for."

"Mystic! How dare you?"

"Fool! How dare you say my true name?" Amara glanced around, making sure that there was no one around to hear them. Lucky, no one was in sight. She glared at Morion. "I did what I had to. You were getting too close to the enemy. If things had carried out the way they were, Lily would have prevented you from doing your mission, and Magneto wouldn't have been too happy with you."

"And I care why?"

"You do care…" Amara grinned, "at least enough for your money. Well, looks like I won't be seeing you around the institute anymore. Guess now you have to stay with Magneto."

"Or not." Morion walked past Amara, carrying all his belongings with him.

"Well, you're the last person I expected to see here." Angel moved so that Lily could enter the small room.

"So you don't stay in Emma's school?"

"Nah. Too many people."

"Figures." Lily took a seat on the couch. "Angel, please, I need a favor."

"You want to see him?" Angel stood in front of Lily. "Princess, you've been crying again. You're eyes are bright red."

"I know you're stronger than me, and that you can probably just kill me if you wanted to with the state that I'm in, but I just need to see him."

"Yeah yeah. I'm too tired to fight right now anyway. Do as you want." With a wave of his hand, Duo rose in front of Lily. "You have five minutes." Angel then left the room.

"Lily?" Duo kneeled down to level himself with her. "You're crying again. Why?"

"Oh Duo. I'm sorry. I know I told you I'd be okay. That day when you visited me, I said I wouldn't cry anymore, but I'm so tired. I can't pretend anymore. They all think I'm happy and that everything's okay, but it's not. Nothing's okay since that day."

"Lily…" Duo brushed a strand of hair out of Lily's face. "Oh Baby, I'm sorry I can't be there for you anymore." He pulled Lily into his embrace. "But you have to try. You have to be happy. You have to learn to move on."

"I can't. You're all I cared about. You're all I ever wanted, and now you're gone." Duo could feel Lily shake from all her sobs. "I don't want to be here anymore."

"But what about Jen, and Micki? Plus Sakura? Oh, and Kat? And was that a new guy I saw?"

"Who? Morion? He's a liar, and I want nothing to do with him anymore."

"No, not Morion. I meant Bobby."

Lily's eyes widened as she pulled back and looked at Duo. "Bobby? But he's just…"

"A friend. I know. That's what you tell everyone. But I see your heart Lily. You yearn to be with him, yet something is keeping you back. He's always there for you, and you can count on him for almost anything. He's nothing like Morion, and that's what you want. That's the real reason you left Morion."

"Duo…" Lily started to reach out for him.

"I love you Lily." And then he disappeared.

Angel entered the room. "Time's up. Better leave before I change my mind and decide to kill you right here and now." Lily nodded and quietly.

"Haven't found your friend yet?" Logan asked Micki. She only shook her head. "You worried?"

"What kind of friend would I be if I wasn't worried? But no matter how much I worry Lily will do whatever she does. She's stubborn that."

"Who's stubborn that way?"

"Lily!"

"Good to see you're okay kid." Wolverine patted her on the head and walked away.

"I'm sorry I worried you."

"So you're okay now?" Micki asked.

"No," Lily admitted. "But I'm working on it." Lily let up her first smile in a week.

"Hm… Seems my ship is taking me to Earth." Michel landed his ship in a forest just outside of a city. Exiting his ship, he took a look around at his surroundings. "So this is where you've come Sage. I shall find you yet and win your heart."

"You're pretty far from Sage then if that's who you're looking for." Morion glared angrily at Michel, as he had just landed his ship on his new home. "Good thing none of my stuff was in there yet."

"Name yourself!" Michel quickly jumped back.

"You want me to name myself when you're the one who crash landed on my home?"

Michel blinked and looked down at the wreckage below his ship. "Oh, Vaisseau, what is this horrible thing that dare hurt you?"

"That horrible thing would be my cottage!"

"Fear not, I shall give you a new home. Come stay aboard my ship then!"

"No thanks Freak." Morion then attempted to walk away.

"But I assure you that you will find it to your liking."

"Whatever."

"I'm Michel. What is your name?"

"None of your business." Morion then stopped as a black vortex opened up in front of him and Michel walked out of it, standing in his way.

"It's rude to walk away when someone is talking to you."

"And it's rude to crash land on someone's else's home and then get in their way." Morion then started to fly in the air when something hit him and he felt himself crash to the ground. "What the?"

"Sorry. I nullified your power."

"You… what?"

Michel only smiled, proud of his work. "I said I nullified your power."


	24. Chapter 24

AN: I have a project for anyone who would like to participate. There are three people I do expect to participate… coughClaire/Jen/Maynecough…. Heh heh! Well here it is.

Project: I want some mini stories to my one story. It can be before, during, after, whenever, I don't care. But I want all of you to write the mini stories. I think it will be fun and it will be a way for everyone to be a part of the story. So please, feel free to write a mini story… or two or so. I don't care. And when you're done please email it to me at LilyHinohotmail.

Chapter 24

_So there I had it. My one chance to see Duo again. What was I thinking? How could I be so selfish. The thing that amazed me though was that Angel had been so willing to help. It's almost like he actually cared. But then that wouldn't make sense. There's no such thing as caring in Angel's dictionary. Anyway, I had my chance and now it was all up to me to make things better._

"John, Mara likes you, but Mara doesn't think she can deal with the fact that you're working for Magneto." Mara looked up at her boyfriend, unable to keep these feelings inside anymore. "Mara's been thinking a lot. There are many things Mara hasn't done right since Mara arrived here. The main thing dealing with Mara's friends."

"What are you talking about?" John took Mara's hand. "I love you Mara."

"If you love Mara then you will come back to the institute and leave Magneto forever." She pulled her hand away from him and turned away so she wouldn't have to see his eyes.

"I can't do that. They would never let me back there after the way I left last time."

"Mara knows Professor Xavier and Mara thinks that he will let you back. I just know it."

"I'm sorry Mara."

"Then Mara is sorry too." Mara took a deep breath and walked away from John.

"Tal, where are you heading?" Kitty caught up to her friend.

"Out."

"Tal!" Kitty grabbed her friend's arm, but Tal only pulled away. "Tal! There's nothing you can do."

"I love Gambit damn it." She turned to face Kitty. "I don't care if he's the enemy and I'm going to tell him that."

"But Tal…"

"Leave her be. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do." Lily said as she walked up next to Kitty. "The girl is in love. What more can you say?"

"But you love the enemy and you refuse to be with him."

"I love one person and he's already gone." Lily smiled despite talking about this. "He was the best thing that had happened to me."

"Can I have my powers back?" Morion threw his bag onto his new bed. Looking around the room he had to admit it was actually nice for a spaceship.

"Nope."

"You can't keep them from me forever."

"You're right. I can't. Once you're out of my sight, that's it. Or if I'm too weak. But anyway, this is your room. The kitchen is just down this hall. Feel free to look around if you want. I'm going out to buy me some real food." Michel then quickly made his way for the door.

"Real food? Why did you bother to point out the kitchen."

"Are you kidding?" Michel stopped at the door and turned to face Morion. "Everyone needs to know where the kitchen is. Food is great. Don't you like food?"

"Food is food."

"Blasphemy! Food is an important part of life. Without food I just wouldn't be here. Anyway, ship food isn't all that great, so no more distracting me. Food CALLS!"

"Do as you wish." Morion watched as Michel left the ship and was happy that he was gone until Michel came running back almost in tears. "What now Freak?"

"Michel is not like the lovely Sage. I am broke and my currency does not change for this so called Earth. What shall I do? Lend me some money."

"No!"

"Money!"

"No!"

"MONEY!"

"Damn it! Here! Now leave me alone." Morion threw some money at Michel in hopes that he would finally leave him alone, but of course Michel only stood there, still practically in tears. "What?'

"I do not understand the currency here. Michel never went to school. I only cared about traveling."

"You Freak. Leave me alone."

"Explain it to me."

"No…"

But Michel just stood there staring…

And staring…

And staring…

Until…

"FINE! Damn it." And so Morion spared some of his 'precious' time to explain to Michel how the currency on Earth worked.

Tal walked up to Emma's school. What was she doing here? She had planned on talking to Gambit, but she couldn't go in there. She would be killed for sure. It was hopeless. And Gambit never went to the club anymore. Was he avoiding her?

Sighing, Tal turned and started to walk away.

"Tal?" She paused and looked up only to see Gambit. Her heart had skipped a beat.

"Gambit!" She ran up to him and threw her arms around him, holding on tightly. He tried to push her away, but she only attached herself even more.

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you!" she explained through tears. "I can't help it. I love you Gambit, and I don't care if you're the enemy. I want to be with you. If I can't be with you then what's the point of ever falling in love?" Now she felt Gambit's arms wrap around her… or at least she thought so. What happened? She held on tightly as she felt her lifted in Gambit's arms and then it felt like she was being carried away.

"You can't be here. You can't come to see Gambit. They'll kill you. Gambit's not exactly sure, but Gambit doesn't think they saw you yet." Tal crashed to the ground as she was thrown down. "Gambit doesn't want to see you ever again. Leave Gambit alone."

"Gambit!" She quickly grabbed his arm before he could walk away. "No! I love you, don't you understand? I love you more than life itself. If I can't have you I don't want to live anymore."

"Trust Gambit when he says that he isn't worth it."

"But…"

"Tal, Gambit doesn't want to hurt you."

"Then hurt me. I won't let go. You can't possibly hurt me anymore than you already have. Don't you see? What? You think I'm crying for my health? I'm crying because of you! I'm crying because you ignore me! I'm crying because I can't be with you. That's all I want. That's all I need, but you just don't seem to care. My feelings mean nothing to you! I love you damn it and you don't care."

"You think Gambit doesn't care?" Gambit shouted at her. "Gambit loves you! But if you're with Gambit you're life is in danger. Gambit can't allow that. Don't you understand?"

"Do you think I care?" Tal finally stood from her spot and reached up, brushing her hand on Gambit's cheek. "I love you Gambit. My life means nothing without you in it. Leave Emma's school. Come to Xavier's Institute with me. You'll be welcomed there. Anyone's allowed."

"But Tal…"

"Don't argue with me damn it!" She slammed her foot down to catch his full attention. "Aren't you tired of being treated like some kind of weapon? Don't you want your feelings to be acknowledged for once? Wouldn't you like to be treated equally with everyone else? Don't you ever wish you were free?"

"All the time… All the time."

"Then come with me."


	25. Chapter 25

AN: Sorry this chapter took so long. I was stuck and had no idea what I wanted to write. But thanks to certain people and their nagging abilities, I sat down and started typing again. That person knows who she is, and I thank her for it. I probably wouldn't have as much written if it wasn't for her. So anyway, here's the new chapter. Enjoy.

Chapter 25

_I'm not sure, but as time goes on, I don't know what I'm feeling anymore. My feeling are just starting to mesh with each other, and I can't make sense out of any of them. But while I'm going through this, it seems some of my friends are trying to straighten out their own feelings and relationships. Like take Tal for example. I wish I could be like her and go chase after the one I want. But what do I want now? Or Mara, who has the courage to try and bring her guy back here. I chased mine away because he was on the evil side. But he just doesn't seem evil… not to me at least._

"Tal, are you sure this is okay?" Gambit asked as Tal dragged him down to the institute.

"As sure as I will ever be." Tal stormed into the institute, and everyone watched as she dragged Gambit up to Xavier's office. "Professor Xavier!"

"Well hello Tal, how can I… Is that Gambit?" Xavier stood from his seat.

"Gambit has turned. He would like to join the X-Men," Tal explained. "Please Professor. You have to let him join. He really has changed."

"I have every intention of letting him join us. Everyone deserves a chance. Welcome to the team Gambit." Tal let out a deep breath not even realizing that she had been holding it. She glanced up at Gambit.

"Thank you sir," Gambit got out. "It's an honor to be with the X-Men."

"Now… you realize that since you left White Queen she will want to kill you. My suggestion is to be careful when you're not at the institute. Another is though not many students here know you were an enemy from Emma's school, some do and they won't be as willing to accept you as I have."

"Gambit's well aware of that, and prepared for it. Gambit actually doesn't deserve to be accepted here, but thank you Professor."

Mara lay outside on a bench gazing up at the sky. A tear fell down her cheek. She should have known better. John had been here before and he hated this school. He had left to go work for Magneto. Why did Mara expect him to come back to the school he hated?

"Mara? Is everything alright?" Lily made Mara sit up so that she could take a seat next to her.

"Yeah…"

Lily arched her head back to look up at the clouds. "Have you ever wondered 'What have I done wrong? Why can't things ever work out my way?' I do. I lost Morion and granted it's because I broke up with him, but I just want to know why I can't be with anyone I care for."

"You're talking about Duo, aren't you?" Mara rested her hand on Lily's. "It's not your fault though. Mara heard he died to save you."

"No… Why don't I feel saved then? After that I closed my heart. I didn't let even my friends in. And then one day, Duo appeared before me." Lily let up a small smile. "He told me I should go on living and that he wasn't happy with me. If I died he'd never speak to me again." She started laughing. "I couldn't believe a spirit was threatening me." Tears fell as she continued to laugh. "But I was happy. I was amazed at Duo's ability to be able to still convince me to live on. He'd always been there for me. Even now he's still here. But I hurt." Lily's laugh faded and she just continued to cry. "And I tried to move on. I let someone in, and that someone betrayed me. What am I doing wrong? Why can't I be happy? Mara, you have a chance. At least John never betrayed you. He told you from the beginning that he was enemy and you still accepted him. At the same time he accepted you, knowing very well that you also were an enemy. I think there's still a chance for the two of you. Don't give up." Lily wiped away her tears and smiled at her friend. "I don't want to see anyone else suffer."

"Lily…" Mara smiled and nodded. "Mara understands. Mara will try again." She gave Lily a hug and stood up. "Oh, and about the mission to protect Earth… Mara's finally decided to help as well."

"Welcome to the team Gambit," Micki greeted the newcomer. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you."

"About time you two worked things out," Jen pointed out. "I was about to knock the two of you to your senses."

Gambit laughed and wrapped his arm around Tal's waist, pulling her close. "Gambit's glad to be on the team. Gambit missed everyone."

"Ha! No, I bet the only person you missed was Tal," Jen accused. Gambit only laughed.

"Oh, Micki, there you are." Wolverine walked up to Micki. "I thought that we were supposed to help with the training today."

"Oh, I completely forgot." Micki shook her head. "Sorry guys but I've got to go."

"Bye Micki." Jen waved as her friend walked away with Wolverine. "I bet the only reason she really agreed to that was to spend time with Wolverine."

"What's with those two anyway?" Tal asked.

"Micki has a thing for Wolverine and vice versa," Lily said as she walked up to her friends. "Hello Gambit. Good to see you're doing well."

"Lily!" Bobby ran up to the group. "I've been looking everywhere for you."

"Oh, Bobby… I'm sorry. I completely forgot." Lily smacked herself on the forehead. "Well we still have time. I'll help you study. Bye everyone." Lily then ran off with Bobby.

"That said, Gambit has somewhere to be as well." Gambit said his goodbyes to everyone and then left the institute.

"John!" Mara ran up to her boyfriend. John stopped walking and looked down at Mara. She stopped and was breathing deeply as she tried to catch her breath. "Mara… Mara needs to talk to you."

"What now Mara? I'm busy."

"Busy doing what?" she practically shouted at him. "Running stupid little meaningless errands for Magneto? What's so special about him anyway?"

"You wouldn't understand."

"No! Mara does understand. John what you're doing is stupid. Mara loves you, but she isn't happy with what you're doing."

"Stop lecturing me," John yelled back at her.

Mara stumbled back, surprised that John had raised his voice at her. "John… What did Mara do so wrong that you don't want to be with her?" A tear streamed down her face. "Mara finally finds someone that she wants to be with, someone that acknowledges her. And now he doesn't want her anymore."

"Mara… that's not it."

"Back in Mara's hometown, Mara had no home. She wandered the streets. She had no friends. Mara was hated. But now Mara has finally found a home and someone to love. Why won't you be with Mara?"

"Mara…" John pulled Mara into his embrace. "I'm sorry. But I can't just leave Magneto. He accepts me."

Mara pushed away from John and smacked him. "So does the institute. Mara gives up. Do what you want John. Mara promised herself that this would be the last time she comes after you. Goodbye."

"Oh, Gambit, you're back." Emma smiled. "How did things go?"

"Gambit is part of the X-Men now."

"Good… good. You always were my favorite student. Good job Gambit." Emma started laughing. "They'll never see this coming." Gambit only stood by her smiling.


	26. Chapter 26

AN: In the last chapter someone pointed out that I had Xavier stand. --" I'm sorry. I wrote it late at night and just wanted to get it done I guess. But just so everyone knows… it was a complete mistake. Anyway, here's the next chapter. Enjoy.

Chapter 26

_It seems the longer I stay on Earth, the more homesick I am. Earth was great, but there were always some sort of problems. Not to mention because this wasn't my home I couldn't always feel when there was danger. I guess I just need to train more._

Michelle was walking down the street and stopped when he noticed a large building with many kids and teens of all ages. Curious, he walked in. Was this some sort of school? The people were so friendly. He liked the atmosphere here.

He stopped when a group of people sitting under a large tree caught his attention. _No_, he thought. _It can't be._ _But it is… Lily._

As if sensing his presence, Lily's gaze turned toward him. For a moment all she did was stare at him until finally she smiled. She stood and walked over to him.

"Long time no see," she greeted.

"What are you doing here?" Michelle asked.

"Fighting a war. Let me guess. You're tracking Sage."

"Of course." He smiled proudly. "Why else would Michelle be here? So does that mean that you know where she is?"

"Not at the moment, no. But she comes around here every now and then looking for Morion, but alas, he no longer resides here."

"Morion? Michelle has met him. He lives on Michelle's ship now."

"Morion does? Oh Michelle. Kick him out. Kick him out now. He's trouble."

"Lily?" Jean stepped up beside Lily. "Your lesson is about to start. Are you ready?"

Lily blinked and looked up at Jean and sighed. "Yes ma'am." Lily turned to Michelle. "It was nice seeing you again. Come visit. I'm sure eventually you'll run into Sage." Lily waved and walked off with Jean.

Michelle was a little curious as to why Lily had told him to kick Morion out but he just shrugged it off and left the Institute in hopes of finding something good to eat. He walked into a small store that had food everywhere but he couldn't remember what Morion had explained to him about the currency. He stopped a young lady.

"Excuse me. Michelle is new around here and doesn't understand the currency here. Could you help Michelle?"

"Of course," the girl smiled. "Where are you from?"

"The Sun."

The girl only blinked, confused. "No… really."

"But it's true. Michelle is from the Sun. And Michelle has many friends from the other planets. Technically we're not allowed here on Earth, though never got why." Michelle shrugged.

The girl only started to laugh at him. "What are you? Some sort of nutcase?"

"If Michelle weren't from the Sun could he do this?" Michelle started to fly and started speaking in some unknown language. The girl started to scream and ran away. Michelle landed and watched as she ran away from him. "What did Michelle do wrong?"

Jen was in the TV room flipping through channels. Bored, she just stopped on the news. "I wonder if there's anything interesting going on." She was about to turn off the TV when she saw a picture of Michelle. "What?"

Sakura leaned over Jen and put the volume up. "When did Michelle arrive on Earth?"

"This is bad," Jen stated. "Michelle isn't like us. He NEVER went to school. He doesn't know the rules."

"… claims that he is from the Sun," the newsperson explained. "Isn't it enough that we have problems with our own mutants and now we have aliens? We must put an end to all of this. Just how many more creatures must we fear?"

"Creature?" Sakura shouted. "I'm no creature. None of us are."

"They can't help it if they're scared of us."

"What ya guys watching?" Kitty asked as she took a seat next to Jen.

"This guy is crazy," Jen tried to cover up. "He claims to be from the Sun. Everyone's scared now of aliens invading Earth."

Sakura couldn't help but laugh. "That's ridiculous."

"Aliens?" Kitty looked a little interested. "But that's kind of a scary thought though. I mean… aliens? They could be stronger than us mutants. I don't understand."

"Looks like you got yourself caught."

"Michelle does not know what he did." Michelle sobbed onto his desk. "Explain to me what Michelle did." Morion only sighed.

"Whatever. Look, they're scared of you. They're scared enough of me, meaning they'll be terrified of you. Now you can't go anywhere without someone trying to kill you or whatever."

"Why didn't Lily say so when Michelle saw her then?"

"You know Lily?"

"Oh yeah! Lily mentioned you. Michelle's not sure, but he thinks Lily does not like you?"

"Lily hates me."

"Hm…."

"So wait… where do you know Lily from?"

"She is the Princess of Mars."

"Mars?" Morion fell back onto his bed. "You're lying. She's an alien too?" Michelle just nodded. "Wait. That means Lily's in danger. Michelle, you can't tell this to anyone."

"Why?"

"It's bad enough everyone will be after you. Don't put Lily in danger because of your stupidity."

"Stupidity? Michelle is not stupid!" Michelle shouted. "Michelle resents that," he pouted. "Take it back."

"Why should I? I can't help it if you're stupid."

"Take it back!"

"No!"

"TAKE IT BACK!"

"FINE! You're not stupid. Geez."

In response, Michelle laughed and stuck his tongue out at Morion. "And no more saying mean things to Michelle or he'll tell Lily."

"Why not? Go ahead. She'll kill me either way if she ever sees me again anyway."

"What do you mean Michelle basically blew our cover?" Lily asked in a near whisper.

"He was on the news today. Apparently he told some girl that he was from the Sun and that he had friends from other planets," Jen explained. "Lily, what do we do if everyone finds out? The second rule under not going to Earth was making sure that Earth never found out about us."

"I guess both those rules are broken. There's nothing else we can do. We just have to pray they don't find out we're one of those friends."

"Lily! There you are." Bobby walked up to the two cousins. "I've been looking everywhere for you. Hurry up or we're gonna miss our movie."

"Oh I totally forgot. Sorry Jen. Gotta go." Lily grabbed her purse and ran out the door with Bobby. She shook her head trying to forget her worries, but no matter what it was still there in the back of her head nagging at her. What if people did find out? What would happen to her and her friends?

"Professor Grey? Are you okay?" Sakura helped her fallen Professor up. She wasn't sure what had happened. One minute she was talking to Jean about the assignment that was due next week and the next minute Jean was on the ground in a fit of screams.

After a few moments Jean had settled down and was sitting at her desk.

"Professor Grey?"

"I'm okay Sakura. Thank you." Jean smiled up at her. "You don't need to worry about me."

"Um… are you sure?"

"Yeah. Go ahead. I have some things to finish up here." Jean chased Sakura out of the room. When she thought Sakura was gone, Jean slammed her head down on her desk. "Damn it. Get a hold of it Jean."

"Gambit, there you are." Tal ran up to her boyfriend. "Where have you been?"

"Busy. That's all. Gambit had some things to take care of. Care to go somewhere for a bit?"

"Of course!" Tal linked her arm through Gambit's. "So where to?"

"Gambit was thinking just a walk would be nice for once."

"A walk sounds nice actually," Tal agreed. "Gambit?"

"Hm?" Gambit looked down at Tal as they left the Institute.

"Tell me what's wrong? I know when you're keeping something from me."

"It's nothing love. I'm not hiding anything. What is there to hide from you?" At first Tal didn't know whether to believe him or not, but in the end she did so anyway.


	27. Chapter 27

#AN: I'd like to thank all that commented in the last chapter.

**So Dark the Con of Man1292**: Thank you for your comment and I'm glad that you like the story so far. Your comment is what actually inspired me to write some more since you are the other besides my friends to comment.

**Mercury Angel1**: Thank you cuz dear. I appreciate your comment. It made me very happy. You must be the only one who wanted me to write out of the group. LOL.

Oh, and thanks to everyone else who has kept up with my story. I really appreciate it. Please let me know of my progress as the story goes on. Enjoy!

Chapter 27

_That's just perfect. After all this time of keeping ours and our enemy's secret, Michelle has gone and blown it all. I knew there was trouble after that first time I saw him, but I was too busy catching up and warning him about Morion to try and figure out just what could go wrong. Well, if anything, Michelle has probably just sped up this war._

"John? What are you doing here?" Mara walked up to John. "Mara thought that you would never leave Magneto. Mara is confused."

John pulled Mara tight into his embrace. "I'm sorry Mara. The whole time we were apart all I could think of was you. You're all I need. Mara, I want to come back to the institute if it means I can be with you once again."

Mara wasn't sure what to say. She was in shock that John had even come back to the institute. He had come back just for her. "So this isn't a dream? What Mara sees is real?"

"Yes Mara. It's all real."

Lily, after meditating for hours had finally found Michelle's ship. She slipped on a jacket and marched out of the institute.

"Lily!" Jen called after her cousin. "Let me come with you." Lily only nodded and the two girls entered the woods. "Will you be okay?" Jen asked. "Doesn't Morion live there too?"

"It's okay. If he tries anything, it's just one more reason to kill him."

"You're serious aren't you?" Jen was actually somehow amazed by this. Did Lily really hate Morion that much? After awhile they had finally arrived to Vaisseau, Michelle's ship.

"Wow, hasn't changed one bit," Jen commented.

"Michelle!" Lily shouted. "I know you're in there. Open up or I swear I will do it myself." Just as Lily was starting to get fed up with waiting, the ship's door opened up, landing right in front of her. "Bout damn time," Lily muttered to herself. Jen only laughed as they walked onto the ship.

"Hello Lily. Michelle is happy to see you," Michelle greeted.

"Cut the act Michelle." Lily grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and slammed him back against the wall. "What the hell were you thinking? Are you trying to get us all killed? Even those so called mutants are terrified of us."

"Lily, calm down." Jen tried to pull her cousin away from Michelle, but Lily held on tight. "I'm sure he's sorry."

"Lily, Michelle did not try to cause such trouble for you," Michelle tried to explain.

"Leave him alone," came Morion's voice. Lily turned her gaze towards him, eyes burning with fire.

"You stay out of this traitor." Lily knew that had hurt him. She could feel the sting as it pierced his heart. But she didn't care. "And since when did you even care about anyone else? Why do you protect him?"

"And why do you blame him? Were you not the one who saw him and yet gave him no warning?" Morion lectured.

"It's none of your business."

"My business or not, you don't deserve to yell at him like that. Why do you always have to be such a bitch?"

"Morion!" Michelle yelled. "Do not call Princess Lily such a thing. She only cares about her people. You can not blame her."

"Why are you sticking up for her?"

"Lily is just scared." Michelle took Lily's hands and pried them off of his shirt collar. He then pulled her into a tight embrace. "Michelle is sorry Lily."

"I know." Lily returned the embrace. "I know. I'm sorry Michelle. It's just…"

"Michelle knows. Lily has friends and family and an entire planet to protect. You were right for acting the way you did. If Michelle still had people to protect he would do the same."

"But you do have people to protect Michelle," Jen pointed out. "Or did you forget your promise to us?"

Lily pulled away and nodded. "That's right. Did you not promise us that you would always protect us? You are the ruler of the Sun. You not only protect the Sun but all the other planets out there. You have much more to protect than me or any of the other Princesses." Lily turned to Morion. "And you… What do you have planned? Why are you staying here?"

"So I have to have something planned wherever I stay?"

Lily just glared at him for a moment and finally just turned away. "Fine. Do what you want. I don't care." Lily stormed off of the ship. Morion, frustrated, ran after her.

"Lily wait! Get back here." Morion grabbed her arm, yanking her back to face him.

"Let go!" She pulled away from him.

"Back there you asked since when did I ever care about anyone else." Morion sighed. "I know you hate me right now, but I think you know the answer to that. It was you Lily. That's when I started caring about other people. You were the first person I ever cared about other than myself."

"And you think I care why?"

"I didn't think you would care. I just had to tell you." Morion shook his head. "Forget this. I'm done trying to talk to you." Morion just waved her away and returned to the ship. Lily knew this was how it had to be but it still hurt. She had been betrayed but somehow she did still care.

Later that day Lily sat alone in her room, reading a book. She didn't want to be bothered and to respect that Rogue and Jen had gone to find something else to do. Lily had felt bad kicking them out, but where else was there for her to go?

There was a knock on her door and she grumbled as she rolled off of Rogue's bed to answer the door. Bobby stood there smiling, holding a rose out to her.

"Does the lady want to go for a walk?" Bobby asked. Lily couldn't help but smile. She took the rose.

"Thank you Bobby. I'd love to go for a walk." Lily linked her arm through Bobby's and they both headed out of the Institute. Lily, not sure where they were headed, just followed Bobby until they came to a stop in front of a beautiful pond.

"Oh Bobby, what is this place?"

"It's my secret spot for when I need time alone." Bobby smiled down at Lily. "Jen and Rogue said they were leaving the dorm to give you some space. I thought a nice breather would help as well. You're welcome here whenever you need Lily."

"Oh thank you Bobby."

"Lily, I know you're still getting over Morion, but please… consider being my girlfriend. You don't have to say yes right now." Bobby took Lily's hand. "I just at least need you to think about it."

"I have Bobby."

"What?"

Lily turned her gaze away from the pond and up to Bobby. "I have been for awhile now. Bobby, I would actually love to be your girlfriend."

"Jen, has something been bothering you lately?" Kurt asked.

"No, don't worry about it." Jen smiled, taking some ice cream out of the freezer. "I've just had a lot on my mind, but nothing major." She grabbed a spoon and dug into the carton of ice cream.

"Is it the aliens?"

"How did you know?"

"Ever since that news report you've just been kind of… well… more to yourself. The only person you would really speak to was your cousin."

"Kurt, can I tell you something and you promise not to get scared or tell anyone else?"

"Love, I'm blue. What can possibly scare me?" Kurt teased. "No really. What is it Jen? You can tell me anything. You know that right?"

"Right." Jen sighed. "That's why I want to tell you. Well… What if I told you I was one of those aliens?" Kurt's eyes widened and he quickly looked around to make sure no one else was around to hear. He turned his gaze back to Jen and she just nodded.

"Jen, does anyone else know about this?" Kurt took her hand. "I'll keep your secret. I promise. I won't let anything happen to you." Jen only smiled, happy that she had someone that she could confide in.

"Lily, I just think that you can expand your powers," Jen lectured. "Now concentrate."

"But I've never tried such a thing. My powers are for reading minds. Not controlling things," Lily explained. "How does telepathy have to do with anything else."

"It's not just telepathy. It's anything doing with psychic powers. You just haven't unlocked the other ones yet, and today we're working with telekinesis."

Lily sighed and closed her eyes, concentrating on the pencil in front of her. When she opened her eyes, frustrated and ready to give up, she gasped as the pencil was floating right in front of her eyes. Never, in her wildest dreams, did she imagine she could do such a thing.


	28. Chapter 28

AN: Yay! Another chapter another day. I hope you all enjoy this one. It's mostly for fun. Let me know what you think. Love to all!

Chapter 28

_Okay, so I had a new boyfriend. I think I deserved one after everything I put up with. Besides, Bobby took care of me. He was always there for me when I needed and this time I had Rogue's approval. All was well._

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Lily sat in Starbucks sipping on a Raspberry White Mocha and watching her cousin type away at her laptop. "Jen, what are ya doin?" Lily asked boredly.

"Making a new program," Jen said as her eyes searched the screen.

"Of?" Obviously Lily wanted to do something. Jen sighed and shut her laptop.

"What would you like to do Lily?"

"Hm… what indeed?" Lily let out a deep sigh. "I've been thinking."

"About?"

"This war. Is it still going to be between humans and mutants or has it changed to between Earth and the Planets? And when this war does come will we survive it?"

"You're the visionary. You tell me." Jen said. She started reaching for her laptop again when Lily suddenly jumped up.

"Hey, let's go to the beach?" Lily grabbed Jen's arm and pulled her out of the booth. Jen quickly grabbed her laptop, holding it close to her as Lily dragged her back to the institute.

"Lily, hey wait," Jen called out. They ended up in Xavier's office. Jen took deep breaths trying to catch her breath. What was with her cousin all of a sudden?

"Lily, Jen, what brings the two of you here?" Xavier had asked the two girls.

"What indeed?" Jen glared at her cousin. Lily hadn't said anything to her, just made her run all the way over here. "You're trying to kill me, aren't you?"

Lily waved her hand at her cousin and smiled to Xavier. "Professor, I want to go on a mission."

"And what mission is this perhaps?" Xavier raised an eyebrow at her.

"A mission to have fun," she happily exclaimed. If Jen didn't think her cousin was insane before, she most certainly did now.

"To have fun? Interesting. What did you have in mind?"

"The beach Professor. What better way to relax then under the sun and with some waves?"

"And who do you plan to take on this mission with you?"

"I think you know who I have in mind Professor."

"That's a good portion of the students Lily."

"But we'll be back that very night. I just want to take a one day trip. There's so much stress lately and with the news about aliens even mutants are on high alert. I just want to get everyone's mind off of things for a little while."

Xavier smiled. Lily really did know how to take care of people. "I understand Lily. You may have your trip to the beach and to make things easier I'll have Scott fly you over there first thing in the morning."

"Oh, thank you Professor." Lily ran around his desk and hugged him. Just as quickly she was out the door humming cheerfully to herself, Jen in tow.

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"Yay! The beach!" Sakura ran down to the ocean, yelling, "Hot," as she realized the sand was burning her feet. Lily only laughed and set up a chair and umbrella not too far from the water. She sat down.

"This was a great idea Lily," Bobby said as he sat down next to his girlfriend.

"Of course," said Lily. "All my ideas are good." She laughed and jumped up from her seat and Bobby tried to attack her. The couple ran down to the water and Lily started splashing water at Bobby. Jen, seeing her cousin down in the water, took that chance to steal her cousin's seat. Kurt sat right beside her.

"It's a good thing the Professor had this private beach," stated Kurt. Jen nodded. "Otherwise I couldn't be here."

"Now I couldn't have that," Jen explained. "It's no fun without you. I probably would have stayed behind then."

"Then your cousin would have been lonely."

Jen sighed. "I don't know. Even with everyone around I think she's still lonely."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean the only person who could really make her feel wanted and loved is no longer around. Lily has friends and family and a boyfriend, yet still the only one she wants is Duo. She only lives because he told her to." Jen leaned back in her chair. "I don't know who she thinks she's kidding. She can't trick me."

"Is she really trying?" Micki asked her friend as she took a seat on a towel under the umbrella.

"Hm… I wonder." Jen stared up at the sky. "I think she is because if she weren't it just might be worse. That's probably why she keeps herself busy."

"Isn't that why she suggested the beach for everyone?" Micki pointed out.

"No, she really did do that for everyone. She hates seeing people stressed or upset."

"That's because it only makes her condition worse." Jen looked over at her friend. "Lily hides her feelings and cares for other people to keep herself busy. She worries about others when she knows she should worry about herself. It's her way of running away from everything. She decided on the beach because she needed another distraction."

"Aw, I think you're all thinking too much." Sakura grabbed a towel and grabbed a drink.

"About what?" asked Tal as she had finally made her way down to the beach. She had stopped up at the beach house to talk to Gambit for a moment. For some reason he was being a little difficult.

"Glad you could make it Gambit," Jen pointed out. When Lily had invited everyone Gambit was a little hesitant on coming. No one knew why.

"Hey is that…" Jen pointed at someone near the ocean, but was stopped.

"LILY!" Michelle ran towards Lily and glomped her, sending her into the ocean. Lily resurfaced coughing up water and glaring at Michelle.

"Why are you here?" she demanded.

"Michelle heard you were going to the beach and wanted to come join you!"

Lily sighed and rolled her eyes. "Ok ok. Geez, you're an odd one. Following people. Someday someone will think you're a stalker." She laughed. "Oh wait! You already are! So how did you get here?"

"I flew."

Lily blinked and groaned. "Is he here?"

"Of course. He lives with Michelle."

"Are you guys talking about me?" Morion appeared staring blankly into the ocean. "Why did you want to come again Michelle? And why did I have to come?"

"You need some fun in your life," Michelle pointed out.

"Ain't that the truth," Lily muttered to herself. Morion only glared. Lily grinned. "Hey Morion, have you met my new boyfriend, Bobby?" She grabbed Bobby's hand. "Oh, right, of course you have. Well, nice seeing you again. Gonna go now. Have fun." She waved and ran back up to her friends still holding Bobby's hand.

"Lily, do not run away from Michelle!" Michelle chased after her.

"Don't follow me!" Lily shouted back.

"But Michelle is hungry and he smells Lily's food." He sat down next to Lily. Morion had gone back to the ship.

"You smell…" Lily shook her head. "Shoulda known." She laughed and handed him an egg sandwich. "Where there is food there is Michelle."

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"Lily, your serve!" Bobby called out. He tossed the ball to Lily. After awhile some of the group had decided they wanted to play volleyball. It was Lily and Bobby against Jen and Kurt.

Lily served the ball over the net and Kurt being Kurt teleported to it and bounced it back over. "Kurt!" Lily shouted as she saved her court and sent it flying back over the net. _No POWERS!_ she screamed into his mind. He grabbed his head, causing him to miss the ball. "HA!"

"We won!" Bobby shouted. He dodged the ball as Jen had thrown it at him and she quickly ran away from her cousin. The two girls ended up in the water in a fit of laughter. Eventually they decided to build a castle with a moat. Everyone ended up helping and they all together built a very large elegant castle with a little of everyone's personality on it.

As the day was coming to a close Lily stared up at the sky which was turning a beautiful dark blue. She reached up once again as if reaching for home. Alone she thought and yet not. She smiled, just thinking to herself. _Duo, you saved me. And I know you'll always be there to protect me. I shouldn't be afraid, should I?_

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"So, you feeling better?" Micki asked Lily as they entered the jet. Lily smiled at her friend.

"Better than the last time you asked."

"Cuz dear!" Jen sang out as she came up behind her cousin. "This was a great day. Thanks for dragging us all out here."

"Cause she had to do a lot of dragging," Micki commented.

"Thanks everyone for coming today." Lily smiled at everyone. "I really appreciate it. I had a lot of fun today."

"Glad to hear it," Tal joined in. "We need you at top notch when the war comes." She poked Lily and quickly found a seat away from the fiery girl. It had been a good day for everyone as they were all now relaxed and freed from their fears, even if just for a little while.


	29. Chapter 29

AN: You know, I realized as I was going back through my chapters that they were getting shorter. Wow…. But anyway, here's the next chappie. I hope you all enjoy it. And please review… they make me happy. I haven't been getting enough lately. sob sob

Special Thanks:

**Mercury Angel**: Thankies for the review. Makes me happy. Luv ya cuz dear. And I'm glad the last chapter amused you. It was fun to write, hehe.

Chapter 29

_The next morning felt so great. I was so relaxed. The beach had been a great idea. It seemed like everyone else agreed with me. And while I missed my home back on Earth, I realized that this was my home as well._

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"Well well Morion, it looks like you've found yourself a new home," Magneto stated. Morion glared at the man. "Thought you could hide from me, huh? Did you forget you work for me?"

"What do you want Magneto?"

"I have a new mission for you."

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"So what are we going to do now that they know of our kind?" Diamond asked Angel.

"Expose a few of our kind. That's what." Angel grinned as he finished writing something and sealed it in a yellow envelope.

"Where do you plan on sending that?"

"Where do you think?" Angel set the envelope to the side. He would deliver it later. "They'll have trouble getting out of this one. If I can turn everyone against them then that would make things much easier for me."

"But couldn't that mean death for both Lily and Jen?" Diamond questioned.

"I'd rather they die if I can't have them. No one else can have them. They're mine."

"Greedy, aren't we?" came Emma's voice as she entered the small room. "Do they really mean that much to you?"

"They are mine. I placed my claim on them years ago and I never let go of what is mine."

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"Gambit, where have you been?" Tal asked as she came up to her boyfriend. "I haven't seen you for days." Lily, who had been with her friend, looked up at Gambit and nodded.

_I'll report it,_ she said to Gambit. _Go ahead and spend time with Tal. She's missed you._ Lily smiled when Gambit thanked her and she turned, heading in the direction of Xavier's office.

"Professor?" Lily pushed open his door peering inside.

"Lily?" He smiled and motioned for her to come inside. "What brings you here?"

"Gambit has just reported in Professor, but he got caught by Tal before he could get here." Lily smiled, taking the seat across from Xavier. "But as I've read in his mind, Emma has left the school to Gambit for a little while so she can go recruit more mutants. Professor, this is our chance. Angel has gone with her."

"I see. Well then Lily, I leave you in charge of this mission." Xavier smiled at the surprised look on her face. "I trust you. You have one hour to gather your team and head over there."

"Thank you Professor." Lily stood, bowing her head slightly. She turned and left to go gather her team.

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"Tal, I need to speak with you," Gambit started, pulling his girlfriend into his room and sitting on his bed, her right next to him. "Gambit's been hiding something from you." He stared down at her. "I've been working for Emma since I arrived here."

"What? But why?" Tal was confused. "Gambit, I don't understand. You lied to me?"

"No, that's the thing. But I couldn't tell you. Professor Xavier knew. It was his mission for me. Tal, when I arrived and the Professor spoke to me, he also spoke in my head telling me to remain with White Queen. He wanted me to be his inside source. I was the best candidate since I already worked for her." Gambit took a deep breath.

"That day you came to get me, I was already heading to the institute. White Queen had ordered me to act as if I switched sides and to join the X-Men so I could give her inside information. So far I've only given her what she already knows saying that no one quite trusts me enough yet. She bought it, but I'm not sure how much longer she will."

"Gambit?"

"I didn't mean to deceive you Tal, but it was my mission and Gambit doesn't mess up his missions. Not when it means putting the ones he loves in danger." He pulled her into an embrace. "Gambit doesn't want to do this anymore."

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"Lily." Lily stopped and spun around to face Jean.

"Professor Grey, what is it?"

"I hear you're going on a mission." Lily nodded her head. "I want you to be careful."

"What do you care?" Lily felt bad saying it the way she had, but she just never felt like Jean ever really cared.

"I do care." She sighed. "I want to speak with you before you leave. Come with me." Lily nodded and followed Jean into a nearby classroom. Jean motioned for Lily to take a seat and Lily did just that, Jean sitting across from her.

"There's something I've been meaning to ask you since the reports of aliens started."

Lily breath caught and she struggled to keep herself from looking surprised or scared. "What about it Professor Grey?"

"Are you one of those aliens?" Lily eyes widened and Jean took Lily's hand. "If you are, it's okay. You don't have to be scared. But Lily, it would make sense because I can't ever read you, not even your presence. I got curious and for the first time I tried to read your friends, but I can't. It doesn't make sense unless you're all…"

A tear fell, and Lily choked back a sob. "Please don't tell anyone." She looked up at Jean, eyes pleading with her. "I know you don't like me, but please don't tell anyone. I didn't come here to hurt anyone. I was just curious. We were never allowed to come to Earth. We wanted to know why and what it was like. Earth is wonderful Professor Grey. I love the people here."

"Lily, what makes you think that I don't like you?" Jean pulled the young girl into an embrace. "You're not like any of my other students. And I realize you're just like me when I was your age. Your powers are just as great, but unsteady as well."

"Professor?" Lily was surprised to be hearing this from Jean.

"Lily, you're no longer my student. You've become my apprentice. Haven't you noticed? I expect your powers to grow just as mine have." She let the girl go and was once again staring down at her, this time smiling. "I won't let anything happen to my best student." Jean patted the girl on the head. "I'm sorry for everything I've put you through. Especially the battle with Emma. I know that's what really set you off. It's just…"

"Professor Grey?" Lily blinked, unsure of what to think. "What's wrong?"

"My powers have grown so much. They're becoming so much more unstable. I'm not sure how much longer I can control it."

Lily blinked and gasped. "So I was right. She's awakening, isn't she?"

"Lily, I need your powers to grow. For the sake of everyone here."

"But why? What does my power have anything to do with it?"

"You have one as well, don't you? An inner being."

"Secada."

"Yes. I saw her when you were meditating one day during our training. But she's calmer. Phoenix isn't. She's destructive. If something happens I need you to be strong enough." And suddenly Lily realized what Jean was saying. Had this really been the same Jean that she had hated so much not too long ago? When did Lily actually find herself liking her? But Lily had answered her own question. It was when Jean had forced her to expand her powers, to see what more she could actually do with it. Jean had pushed her, and Lily liked challenges.

But why, when Lily was finally starting to like Jean, was she saying something like this? Why did Lily's power have to grow for such a thing? It just didn't seem fair.

"Professor Grey," Lily started, but Jean interrupted her.

"I'm sorry. I've taken up some of your time. You have yet to get your team together. Good luck Lily." With that Jean got up and left the room, leaving Lily to sit there by herself. Lily didn't want to move, didn't want to register what had happened. She took a deep breath and stood.

"I won't let it happen. I can't…"

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"Is that everyone?" Lily asked, glancing around at her team. She had gathered as many people as she could. She smiled. Her team had consisted of ten people, all of who were herself, Bobby, Micki, Jen, Nightcrawler, Tal, Gambit, Mara, Colossus and Sakura.

"I don't think so." Logan walked up to the group. "First of all, you need someone to fly you over there and second of all, I think you all need an adult around."

"WOLVY!" Sakura glomped Logan. "Aww are you worried about me?"

"Great," Mara muttered to herself. "Bad enough Mara has to go to this battle with Emma's school, now Mara has to go with Wolverine."

"Thank you Logan." Lily smiled up at him. "It's much appreciated."

"Well, I'm sure you didn't want to ask Scott."

Lily blinked and quickly shook her head. She might have grown a liking to Jean but she still hated Scott more than even Angel.

"Well," she started. "Now that everyone's together, let's go."

AN: Hope you enjoyed. And here's your remind to Review. PLEASE! Luv to all!


	30. Chapter 30

AN: Well, here it is. A new chapter. Hope it's exciting enough for all of you. Please read and review. I'd really like to get your opinions, good or bad.

Special thanks to:

**Blue Elf Like Person**: Hey there Tal. Glad you were able to finally catch up and glad that you enjoy the story so far. I'm sorry that you don't like Lily with Bobby, but that's just how things are. Besides Lily can't be with the enemy. shrugs She's not that type of person. And of course Gambit isn't a bad guy. You didn't really believe that did you? LOL. Well, keep reading and please let me know what ya think.

**Mercury Angel**: LOL, it is scary that Lily likes Jean huh? I'm Lily and I hate Jean lol. For all I care she can die… oh wait. She did. Hehe. I like your description for Gambit lol. "double double agent person thingy" lol. Keep reading.

**Luv to all!**

Chapter 30

_So here we were heading back to Emma's school. I can't believe I was the one leading them back. It had been my idea this time. Sure, I knew more than I did last time all thanks to Gambit, but what made me think we could still win this? Tracking back to our battles before, we always lost. Was I really prepared for this? Of course I was. I didn't have a choice. This was our one chance to end Emma's school and I wasn't going to let it pass._

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Gambit stepped off the jet, Lily following close behind. She motioned for everyone to stay there for a moment and looked over to Gambit. "Are you ready for this? Once they notice you're with us, that's it. You're no longer a part of this school."

"Gambit stopped being a part of this school the day I learned Tal was the enemy." He smiled down at Lily. "I can't have that."

Lily grinned and motioned for everyone else to follow them. Using her powers Lily thrust the gates open, the group waltzing right in. Many eyes were planted on them and Lily felt this sort of energy spark inside her. She was excited.

"Well well. If it isn't Lily." Lily blinked and looked over at Livia and Keith. She grinned.

"Hello."

"Gambit, what are you doing with them?" Livia asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Keith started. "He's turned."

"Against us?" Livia's eyes widened. "That sucks. And to think I had a thing for him." Livia shrugged.

Lily rolled her eyes. "Are we gonna stand her talking all day or actually fight? I didn't exactly come here for a chat."

Livia blinked and started laughing. "Dude, she's about as impatient as I am usually." Livia grinned. "Okay then. If that's how you want it." Livia stepped back raising her hand at Lily. Unsure of what was happening at first Lily blinked and grinned throwing up a barrier around her mind. A dark energy surrounded her and Lily grinned at the confused look on Livia's face.

"It sucks when your only ability is suffocating people with that black energy you throw out." Lily stepped towards the young girl. "Are you scared?" A fire sparked around Lily, slowly growing until she was a walking flame. "But that's not your real power is it? You shoot for the mind. I noticed this last time we fought. You don't exactly suffocate the person but more like make the person think they're suffocating. This in turn causes them to make themselves stop breathing. It's more like tricking the mind into doing just what you want it to do… dieing."

"You… how did you…" Livia stumbled back, trying to avoid being touched by those flames.

"I am a mind reader… or did you forget?" Lily stopped when Keith seemed to intervene. "Out of the way, Keith. My target is Livia." Lily grinned. "Anyway, you're power works the same." Keith blinked, unsure of what she meant. "In order to paralyze someone you need to look right into their eyes, or rather, that's what it looks like from someone else's point of view. But I've witnessed your powers. You also require looking into the mind. Another trick." Lily stepped forward and Keith stepped back.

"You don't know what you're talking about!"

Lily, tired of Keith now, waved her hand to the side, sending Keith flying to the side into a tree. He let out a groan, unsure of what had happened. Lily had been too far to actually connect but yet it felt like a full blown punch. What had she done? Lily's power was fire and mind reading… wasn't it?

"Lily!" Lily spun around to face Angel.

"What are you doing here?" Lily demanded.

"Making your life miserable." Angel smiled. "I was supposed to go with Emma, but I just didn't trust things were right. Seems I was right." Angel sprouted those black wings of his and flew into the air.

Lily growled and looked over at her friends. "You handle everyone else. I've got him." Grinning, Lily watched the expression on Angel's face as she slowly rose into the air. "You see, I've been experimenting with my powers. Seems I can move things with my mind… including myself." Angel blinked but then grinned. Lily glared at that smug look he had. "What's so amusing?"

"I bet it takes a lot of concentration."

Lily blinked. "You're point?"

"And what were to happen if you lost that concentration." Lily thought for a moment but only smiled. "Is that what you're thinking? That maybe you can make me lose my concentration? I'm sorry to tell you this, but I've been working on that."

"What do you mean?"

"Just that if you want me to lose my concentration, you'll have to work extra hard." Lily flew straight at him, her body still covered with flames. Angel quickly summoned Duo's form, but Lily flew right through him. Angel flew back wondering about Lily's knew attitude and new found powers. He got ready to attack Lily when she came close enough, but instead of flying right up to him, Lily flew around and behind. Grabbing both Angel's wings, flames engulfed every single black feather. Angel screamed as he fell to the ground. Lily winced when he finally hit. A quick search of his mind proved he was still alive, but that he wouldn't be moving around anymore.

Meanwhile, Jen was fighting Diamond, Nightcrawler right by her side. She sent a spray of ice crystals at the grey haired boy, but Diamond just sent one of his beams of light out, incinerating every ice crystal that came towards him. Jen was getting frustrated and this time knelt down, throwing her hands onto the ground. The air around them got cold and Kurt knelt by Jen, cupping his hands over his mouth as he realized he could see his breath.

"Jen, what are you doing?" Nightcrawler asked his girlfriend.

"Whatever it takes to stop Diamond." She closed her eyes and concentrated. A light blue aura surrounded her and the ground underneath started to freeze. It created a path from Jen to where Diamond stood. As that ice reached the boy, he gasped when his legs were being frozen in place. He wanted to shoot his beam at it, but knew that chances were he'd incinerate his legs as well. Instead he directed his beam at the still concentrating Jen.

"Jen!" Nightcrawler grabbed his girlfriend and teleported them out of the way just in the nick of time. They appeared behind Diamond. Before he could do anything, Jen grabbed the boy's arm and made him into a statue of ice. She jumped back when a card hit that statue, blowing it to bits. She turned her gaze to Gambit who only nodded to her and ran off to attack the smaller mutants from the school.

Sakura was running around the school from student to student, blinding each with her little lights. Each one she saw worthy enough she threw her hands up in front of her, motioning towards that person and they'd seem to explode from the inside. Grinning, she would move onto the next person.

Micki was with Wolverine, who had just been easily gutting his targets. Using her strength, Micki would throw students about, knocking some clear away from the school or smack dab into a tree. Wars weren't her thing, but if she had to she would fight as long as possible. She spun around grabbing a student by the throat. She squeezed her hand just enough until she heard the students neck crack. She had to remember, this was their mission. These were dangerous mutants that had to be destroyed. She had paused for a moment and Wolverine slid up behind Micki, gutting another mutant that had just tried to attack her. Micki turned, blinking at the man, and nodding her thanks.

Mara had gone after Keith. When Lily had thrown him into the tree, she trapped him there causing weeds to grow all around him. For a moment Keith had paralyzed the girl, but his paralysis was eventually broken as a running student had bumped into the girl, sending her to the ground. Mara blinked around in confusion then glared at the ground, not wanting to look back up at the boy tied to the tree. She slammed her hands on the ground and listened as vines gutted right through the boy. He let out a scream that died quickly. Finally Mara looked up to see the boy slumped over covered in blood. Her eyes were wide as the vines unwrapped themselves, dropping the boy to the ground. She winced at the loud thump. She looked down at her hands and then back at the boy. She had never killed before.

"Mara!" She was caught as Colossus collided right into her, sending the both of them to the ground. There was a blast where the girl had been standing and she looked up to see more students approaching them. Gathering her strength, she sent her energy into the ground and vines rose whipping all around the students. Some had been stabbed as soon as those vines rose from the ground, the others afterwards as the vines had targeted them and not one missed. The vines fell back into the ground, and Mara couldn't tear her eyes from that bloody battlefield.

She felt a hand rest on her shoulder and stared up at Colossus. He nodded down at her and then ran off to go help the rest of his friends.

Colossus had joined Bobby, who was freezing students left and right. Colossus just charged through each of those frozen students, shattering each one to bits. Bobby hadn't remembered there being this many students at the school, but it was only natural that their numbers had increased over time.

Over where Livia was, Tal had the girl caught by wind. Glaring at Livia, Tal used the wind to form a type of barrier around Livia. Eyes wide, Liv tried to tear at that barrier knowing it was pointless but trying anyway. It didn't take her long to realize the wind moving around her had been sucking her oxygen away, suffocating her. So this is what it was like. She tried to focus her gaze on Tal, but the wind was too strong, weakening her hold on life. She fell to the ground and Tal finally let that wind go.

"Now you know what it feels like when you suffocate other people," had been the only think that Tal had said. She looked around to see how the rest of her friends were doing and blinked as she saw Lily fly towards the school. "What's she planning to do?"

"Burn it down of course," Bobby explained, walking up next to the girl. The pair looked around. Bobby shook his head. "Good thing we've all been training so much lately."

"But Lily…" Tal started. "When did she learn to fly?"

Bobby's eyes widened as he stared down at the girl. "You didn't know? Didn't she tell you she could move things with her mind?"

"She told me that, but she didn't say anything about flying."

"Technically she's not flying," Bobby explained. "It's just like when she moves something with her mind, only that object is herself."

"What?"

"She using telekinesis on herself."

"She's what?" Tal blinked and stared back at her friend who was a flying torch. "She really has been training a lot lately, hasn't she?" Bobby only nodded and gave an order for everyone to return to the jet. He watched as Lily flew above the school and in mere moments it blew up in flames. Lily's fire around herself died as she lowered herself to the ground next to Bobby. She smiled up at him weakly and he helped his girlfriend to the jet. She had used more energy than she had meant to.

When everyone was accounted for, Logan and Micki sat up front, Micki piloting the jet back home. Everyone was tired, exhausted from putting so much energy into winning. But it had been worth it. That was one less thing to worry about.

Lily sat in the back, curling up next to Bobby.

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Everyone walked through the institute, confusion spreading at the dark glares that were sent their way. Wanting to know what was wrong, Lily did a quick sweep of everyone's mind and she stopped dead in her tracks. Bobby, who had been following close behind her, walked right into her. Blinking, he looked down at his girlfriend.

"Lily? What's wrong?"

"They know…" was all that came from Lily's mouth.

"Know?" Jen looked at her cousin, confused, but suddenly realized what Lily meant. Kurt watched as all the color drained from the blue haired girl's face.

"How? How did they find out?"

"Find what out?" asked Bobby.

"If you haven't though of it yet, you'll find out soon," explained Logan, who shoved the group past all the other students. "Don't worry. We'll settle this…" He stared down at Lily, who only stared back as she fought back tears. "You should have said something sooner."

AN: YAY! Another chapter finished, and this one was quite exciting… I think. But please, review. Let me know what you thought. I must know. Luv to all!


	31. Chapter 31

AN: Hope you're all happy. Here's a new chapter. Please read and review.

Special Thanks to:

**Marauder Heir**: That's all you could comment on? That you were blowing people up? BAKA! Eh, but glad you enjoyed it.

**Mercury Angel**: LOL, glad you enjoyed that last chapter. Here's the next one. I hope you enjoy this one just as much.

**Luv to all!**

Chapter 31

_So we finally did it. We finally defeated Emma's school. To me it was still a dream. I was hallucinating. But everyone else had confirmed it as well._

_But along with that victory, that dream, came my worst nightmare ever. Everyone now knew our secret. They knew who we were._

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Lily sat impatiently in Xavier's office with Sakura, Jen, Micki, Tal and Mara. Storm had gone to get Kat. They needed everyone from the planets. Logan set a calm hand on Lily's shoulder, reassuring the girl that everything would be okay.

Lily practically jumped up as Kat walked into the room, followed closely by Storm and Jean.

"Professor Grey!" Lily stood to face the woman. "How do they know? Did you tell them? You promised you wouldn't."

"I didn't tell them Lily. It was on the news." Jean motioned for the girl to sit back down and Lily did so.

"The news? But how?"

"Angel," came Jen's voice from the corner. She sighed and looked over at her cousin. "You know it was Angel." Lily blinked then nodded.

"That makes sense."

"So wait! What's going on?" asked Bobby. "I don't understand. We get back from a mission and suddenly we all need to have a talk about Lily and her friends?"

"Bobby, don't you get it?" Lily looked at her boyfriend. "We're aliens," she explained, emphasizing the word aliens.

"Aliens? You mean…?" Bobby blinked and sank back into a chair. "I don't believe it. Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"And put my people in danger? Bobby, I don't think you understand. Humans are scared of mutants… they're even more terrified of aliens. I don't even know why they have to categorize us like that. Just because we're from another planet doesn't mean that we're any different from all of you. That's why I hated the term mutant when I first arrived."

"So what are we going to do Professor?" Jean asked. "We can't very well just throw them out of the school. They have no where else to go."

"I wasn't planning on it Jean," Xavier explained. "They're still welcome here. They are our students after all. I'm just sorry to say that I don't think any of you should leave the institute. Now that people know who you are, you'll be hunted down."

Lily sighed and nodded.

"So we're stuck in this school now?" Jen asked. "That sucks."

"It's the only way." Xavier sighed. "I don't like it anymore than you do. No one should be confined like that."

"Thank you Professor," Lily started, "but what about the other students? They're afraid of us now."

"I don't see why," Colossus cut in. "You're still Lily. No one else. So you had a secret. We all have secrets. One big one being that we're all mutants. Personally, they should understand how you all feel better than anyone else."

"No," Lily cut in. "I understand why they act that way. It just doesn't make sense." Lily sighed.

"What do you mean?" asked Bobby.

"She means," Jen started up, "that how long have the people of Earth been studying the other planets?"

"For years now," Storm answered.

"Right," Jen continued. "And of all those years, not once was there any sign of life. Doesn't it make you wonder what else is out there that you don't know about? And if we're powerful enough to hide ourselves like that, what else are we capable of?"

"How did you conceal yourselves," Storm asked.

"It's the power of our people," Micki explained. "We work hard to conceal ourselves. Every planet has a group of Priestesses that pray everyday to keep Earth from finding out about us. They put that energy into some sort of barrier, causing Earth's eyes to be blind to our very existence. We rely on this energy."

"Let me tell you, it's not easy to keep up either," Lily joined. "I would know. I was one of the Priestesses. And it's a very tiring job, draining all your energy from you. Most women are recruited just for this job, while most men are recruited for the Military."

"But why are only women recruited for this? And why do it if it drains so much energy?"

"Because women have more focus and pure energy," Kat explained. "And as for the draining, they borrow energy from their planets."

"From the Planets?" Jean rose an eyebrow in question.

"Right," Jen cut in. "The Planets are living as well. They hold a special energy that its people feed off of. Without that energy, our people wouldn't have lasted as long as they have."

"That's amazing," Xavier stated, "that so many people can work together so well." He smiled.

"We have faith in our home planets," Sakura added. "There's a type of love and trust that flows through our people. We were never taught to categorize people. It's beneath us. Everyone's different. it will always be that way. There's no changing that. People didn't ask to be born the way they were. You should accept people for who they really are. Not what they do or look like."

"Very nicely spoken." Everyone turned to the door where Amara stood, clapping her hands. "Such faith. Such hope. I could almost cry." She grinned. "I was planning on staying longer, but I think I've found out some very interesting information."

Lily blinked then started glaring at the girl. "Who are you really? Show yourself." Everyone, except Xavier and Jean looked at Lily surprised. "I don't know why I trusted you enough to not read your mind."

"You're not the only one," Xavier explained. "There's more than one mind reader in this whole school and no one knew."

Amara only shrugged and soon there was no Amara. Everyone stared at a blue figure. "You wanted to see my true form. Well, here it is. Name's Mystic, for those of you who don't know."

Lily stared, unsure of what to thing until she finally formed the word, "Shapeshifter."

"That's right. A pretty powerful one at that. I not only take one's form…"

"You also imitate their powers." Lily stared in amazement but quickly shook her head. "Where's the real Amara?"

"Dead. She passed away a little before you and your little crew appeared at Emma's school. I knew exactly who you people were and decided that was my chance to get into this Institute."

Lily's fist tightened till blood started dripping from it. "You killed her. How could you?"

"I'll do anything for Magneto."

Angry, Lily jumped up from her seat, sending a ball of fire at Mystic. Mystic only grinned and quickly turned into Nightcrawler, disappearing from sight. "DAMN HER!" Lily shouted, falling back into her chair. "Damn it!" She leaned over, practically pulling on her hair in anger. "I trusted her."

"We all did," Mara pointed out.

Lily took a deep breath and slowly rose from her seat. "Professor, if you don't mind, I'm quite tired."

"I understand Lily. You're all dismissed." Everyone nodded and left the room.

"Sakura!" Lance ran up to his girlfriend, throwing his arms around her.

"Ack! Choking," was all that Sakura managed to get out and Lance quickly pulled away.

"Sorry, I was just worried. You've all been in there for quite some time. I saw the news and I needed to know if it was true." Sakura sighed and pulled her boyfriend into an empty classroom.

"Yes Lance, it is, and I can understand if you want to leave me."

"Leave you?" Lance took Sakura's hand. "That's the last thing I want to do. Now I want to stay with you even more, otherwise who will protect you from all those crazy people out there who think you're dangerous?" Sakura blinked but then found herself smiling. She really did have the sweetest boyfriend.

"Aw, you care so much." She placed a kiss on her boyfriend's cheek. "Thank you. You're too sweet."

Lance blinked and then grinned down at the girl. "As your boyfriend it's my job to protect you." Sakura only laughed.

0000000000

"So what's gonna happen now?" Jen asked her cousin. Lily sighed and climbed up onto her bed.

"I'm not sure."

"So it's true?" asked Rogue, looking at her two friends. "You're both really aliens?" Jen nodded. "Oh." Rogue suddenly smiled. "That's so cool actually." The two cousins looked at one another and then back at Rogue. Suddenly all three girls were laughing. "Did you both think I was going to hate you when I found out?"

Sighing, Lily nodded her head. "It would only make sense."

"Lily, was I not the first friend you made here?" Rogue asked, and the other girl nodded. "We're best friends, right?" Once again, that nod. "Then why would I hate you?"

Lily blinked then smiled. "I guess you're right."

"Well, now that that's settled," Jen cut in, "I'm sure we're all quite tired." Lily nodded and Rogue cut off the lights, all three girls going to sleep.

AN: Please review! Please review! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!


	32. Chapter 32

AN: Yay! Chapter 32 is now up. Who all has been waiting for this? Yes yes Micki, I know you have, lol. But anyway, everyone please read and review and enjoy!

This chapter is especially for Micki, who I actually promised I'd have it up yesterday… heh heh. Sorry Micki, but here it is now. Hehe.

And thank you to everyone who has stuck to this story so far. It really makes me happy to know that some people out there are actually reading this.

Chapter 32

_Life had gotten a little scarier on Earth. After everyone found out our identities we had been put on the want list, along with Michelle. People were demanding our deaths. I just didn't know what to do anymore. Just leaving the institute was a death wish. People even started cooperating with some mutants just to get rid of us aliens. By this time all I wanted was to be able to return home._

0000000000

Kat was walking around the institute, bored out of her mind. She had wanted to go to her secret spot but Lily had forbidden it. Kat could easily get caught on her way there. Turning a corner, Kat stopped when she felt a brush of wind. Sighing, she turned to face Pietro.

"Well, hey there Kat."

Kat nodded and simply said, "Hi." She turned to continue wandering the institute, but Pietro grabbed her hand, stopping her. She glared back at him. "What?"

"So I hear you're one of the aliens." He grinned.

"Your point? Wanna tell me how much you hate me as well?" Kat asked.

Pietro blinked and asked, "Why would I do that?" He let go of the girl's hand, now frowning. "I like you Kat." He was grinning once again. Kat blinked, unsure of how to react to that. The only people she had ever cared to be around were the other princesses and barely even then. She'd had one boyfriend ever and he was their enemy now. Kat wasn't sure if she could fall for anyone else.

"I'm sorry." She bowed her head slightly and went off to her room, no longer in the mood to wander around. After she had laid out on her bed, Lily suddenly came bursting into her room.

"Kat, I'm so bored," the girl whined and fell onto the bed next to her.

"What are you doing here?" Kat asked and turned away from the girl.

"I told you! I'm bored!" Lily poked the girl and Kat just waved her away.

"Leave me alone."

"But KAT!"

Kat groaned and turned to face the girl. "Do you love annoying people or is it just me?"

Lily grinned and sat up, staring down at the girl. "Just you. So what's wrong anyone? You seem to be in a bad mood."

"How can you tell? I'm the same any day."

"Cause I know you," Lily explained. "We did grow up together."

"Right." The girl went back to facing the wall and Lily sighed.

"So… are you gonna tell me?"

"No."

And so Lily just sat there, not moving, not tearing her gaze away from Kat. Sure, Lily could have just gone into the girl's mind but that would have been an invasion of privacy… no? Kat could just feel it, Lily's gaze piecing the back of her head. She tried to ignore it, but how long had Lily just been sitting there already, just staring at her? Kat closed her eyes in hopes that maybe she could just fall asleep, but she felt Lily shift closer to her and her eyes flew open as she automatically sat up and turned to glare at the girl.

"What the hell do you want?"

"To know what's wrong." Lily didn't smile or anything... Kat noted that she was actually being serious.

Taking a deep breath, Kat explained, "I think Pietro likes me."

"Think?" Lily rose an eyebrow.

"Ok… I know he likes me. He just told me."

"That's a good thing," Lily explained.

"No… no it's not."

"Why not?"

"Because the last and only boyfriend I've ever had turned evil after we dated. What does that tell you?"

"That you're being stupid."

Kat glared at her friend and returned to staring at the wall. "Thanks for the help. Go away."

Lily sighed and stood. "Kat, we're going into a war. I'm afraid for all of us. What if we don't survive? Kat, you can't die wondering what if. Just go for it." Lily smiled slightly and patted her friend on the head. "But it's your choice, so whatever."

Kat listened as she heard footsteps across the room and then the door open and close. Sitting up, Kat stared at the door. "You're wrong… I won't die wondering what if."

0000000000

Jen stared into a carton of ice cream. Normally she'd be digging right into it, but she was so bored today. She wanted to go out and have some fun. Closing the ice cream, she tossed the spoon into the sink and stuck the ice cream back in the freezer. She jumped back when a poof of smoke appeared in front of her and she found her boyfriend staring at her.

"Jen, let's go watch a movie."

Jen smiled. "Sure, what movie?"

"Well, I think everyone chose Naruto," Kurt explained and walked with his girlfriend to the TV room.

"Which movie?" Jen asked.

"The first."

"Ah, okay." Jen grinned. "So that means Lily will be watching, right?" Kurt nodded. Jen figured since the first movie was Lily's favorite out of the two.

They reached the TV room and sure enough, there was Lily, curled next to Bobby while Colossus stuck the movie into the DVD player. Jen took a seat over by her cousin, and pulled Kurt down next to her. Jen didn't really have the patience to sit and watch a movie, but what more was there to do? Jen noticed how everyone else sat on the other side of the room, while only their friends filled up the space surrounding Jen and her cousin. She thanked God that they still had friends at this institute.

0000000000

Micki sat out in her garden, meditating when she heard someone step up behind her. She listened around her and flowers told her who it was. She stood up and faced the man, smiling. "Hello Logan."

"Micki, what are you doing out here?"

"Professor said we couldn't leave the institute. To me, this garden is part of this institute."

"You're right, it is. But I was just wondering why you aren't with your friends?"

"I prefer to spend my time alone."

"I guess that means you'd like me to leave you alone."

Micki shook her head. "No. You're okay." Micki smiled. "It's different when you're around."

Logan nodded. "So what's with the meditation all the time."

"I'm an elf," Micki pointed out.

"An elf? An actual real elf?"

Micki nodded. "Yes."

"What does meditating have to do with being an elf?"

"It's in my nature and it helps me to concentrate. It provides me with a way to get in touch with my inner self."

"What about Lily? She does a lot of meditating as well."

"You heard her the other day. She's a priestess. It's natural for them to meditate. And it's a way to get in touch with her inner being."

"Inner self… Inner being… is there a difference?" Logan asked, taking a seat under a nearby tree.

Micki sat back down and nodded. "Yes. There is an actual being inside of Lily. It usually appears during her meditation or when she's unconcious."

"That's interesting," Logan commented.

"I was talking to Lily a while ago, and she said that Professor Grey has one living inside of her, only it's dangerous and destructive."

"How do you know Lily's isn't?"

"Because we've all spoken to her, and Lily's quite fond of her."

"Does she have a name?"

"Secada." Micki looked up at the sky which was suddenly growing dark. There was a rumble in the clouds and she sighed. "It's going to rain."

Logan blinked and looked up. "I thought it was supposed to be sunny all day."

"You trust the weatherman?"

Logan shrugged. "Good point." The pair both stood from their seats on the ground and headed inside where they found a group of students watching a movie. Micki noticed her friends in one corner and the huge gap to where everyone else sat. Shaking her head, she walked with Logan into the kitchen.

Micki then proceeded to make herself a cup of hot tea, where as Logan just grabbed a soda out of a cabinet. Sitting down, Micki started to sip at her tea when a spirit flew in front of her, smiling. Quickly it had disappeared. She jumped up, almost dropping her tea.

"Micki, what's wrong?"

"Um… nothing… I just thought I saw something." Micki sat back down in her chair, figuring it was just a trick of her mind. She'd never been able to see spirits before, what made her think she could now?

AN: Yeah Yeah… I know… Short. But here it is… A new chapter. Sorry it took a day longer than I said Micki. Anyway, everyone please review!


	33. Chapter 33

AN: Here, a chapter just for Claire because she waited not so patiently, lol, for another chapter while I kept updating other stories. Sorry Micki-chan. Forgive me. Consider this a day late birthday gift, hehe. Enjoy.

Special Thanks to:

**Marauder Heir**: Yay! Review! Hehe, but of course. You have to review. I LOVE YOU!

**Micki**: Hm… hehe. Thanks for a review CLAIRE! Happiness is now definitely me. I gots a review from my buddy. Yayness! More would be nice ya know… Hint Hint…. Heh. Luv ya buddy!

**Mercury Angel**: Chappie! Yay! Thanks for another update cuz dear! Happiness. Can you see the happiness? Of course ya can, lol. Enjoy!

**Luv to all!**

Chapter 33

_My thoughts? My thoughts are so unfocused right now. They're so full of anger and disappoint and most of all hurt and betrayal. This school… Mutants… You'd think they would understand how us 'Aliens' feel, but no… instead everyone is now conspiring against us. What's a girl such as myself supposed to think? So now I'm just trying to cope with everything. Maybe… just maybe we can get through to these people._

xXx

"Michelle is bored," Michelle complained and threw a ball of paper at Morion who only glared at the boy on the couch.

"Find something to do then," Morion ordered.

"Like what?"

"I don't know. Find something." Morion had been getting ready to leave the ship when Michelle jumped up from the couch, hopping in front of Morion.

"Where are you going?" Michelle asked.

"Out."

"Michelle wants to come."

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"But… But… BUT MICHELLE WANTS TO COME!" the boy bellowed out and Morion sighed, rubbing his ears. Glaring at the boy he turned away.

"Fine. You'd just nullify my powers if I didn't let you anyway and you'd just follow me so why not." Morion walked around the boy and headed off the ship. Before actually leaving the ship he turned to face Michelle one last time. "And make sure you have a good disguise. Don't want you getting caught." He then finally left the ship.

Michelle, who had been surprised by Morion's warning, grinned when he realized that the boy really did care. As he grabbed a hooded coat off a chair just to his left, he slipped it on, pulling the hood over his head and exiting the ship, making sure to lock it behind him.

xXx

Lily was reading a book outside under a tree when she saw Scott approach her. The girl groaned and slipped the book into her bag, glancing up at the man who was now towering over her. Looking away, Lily sighed and asked, "Can I help you?"

"Jean said she needs to talk to you."

"If I recall, I was told I have an off day today." She pushed herself off the ground and leaned back against the tree, crossing her arms as she was now staring at Scott.

"Right…" He turned from the girl and towards the institute. "So are you going to go see what she wants?"

"Did I not just tell you I have an off day? I'm going to enjoy every moment of today and that doesn't include going to visit Jean."

"She's your teacher though, no?" He turned back to the girl, and Lily swore if he wasn't wearing the glasses then she would see him glaring at her. As it was, she couldn't and just smiled.

"Obviously you're deaf. Teacher or not, I wouldn't even answer the calls of Professor Xavier." She snatched up her bag and threw it over her head onto her other shoulder and waved her hand at Scott as she walked past him. "Bother me again and I just might have to kill you."

"You might not even have to bother," a voice cut in and Lily spun to face Morion and what she guessed what Michelle. She glared at the boy and stepped back as he slowly approached her. "I can do it for you."

"What are you doing here Morion? You're no longer welcome here." Lily had stopped moving away from the boy as he stopped moving towards her. "I don't know just what your business here is, but leave," she demanded as a fireball sparked in her hand. "I'm much stronger than the Lily you knew."

"Lily!" Michelle called out, and Lily huffed closing her hand to snuff out the fireball.

"Michelle, what the hell are you doing here with him?" Lily asked.

"Michelle just followed Morion here. He did not know that Morion would be causing trouble." Michelle turned to what he deemed his friend in his mind and said, "Morion, let's go. Let's leave them be."

"No. You go ahead and leave," Morion told him, "but I'm here on a mission." Morion glared at Scott. "For some reason Magneto wants me to kill this man. It will lead us into the new world he says. Can't say I actually believe him, but a mission is a mission."

The ground started to slowly move below them and Lily stumbled back into Scott. Pushing the girl aside, Scott pulled off his glasses and a red beam of light was directed to Morion or so he thought until he realized that there was nothing. He was simply just staring at the boy, glasses off. He blinked and looked around trying to figure out what was wrong. It didn't make sense and he glanced at Lily who just stared blankly at Michelle.

"No…" was the only thing that had formed from her mouth as the ground started moving even more.

"Michelle won't let you hurt Morion," Michelle shouted and teleported to behind Lily, grabbing her and whispering, "Michelle is sorry," into her ear. They then teleported to behind Morion and Lily watched as the ground shook uncontrollably under Scott. She hated the man but this wasn't right. She struggled to free herself from Michelle's grasp, but to no avail.

"Stop!" Lily shouted. "Please. Please! Just please stop!" Tears formed as she tried and tried to use her powers, knowing clearly what had happened to them. "Please! Give them back. Stop it! Leave him alone!"

Scott stumbled back and fell to the ground. He'd never felt so helpless before and he didn't like it now. His gaze fell to Lily who was struggling to free herself from Michelle. He watched as the girl suddenly rammed her head back onto Michelle's chin and the boy stumbled back. She started to run towards Scott when suddenly a red beam shot through her shoulder throwing her back. That beam quickly disappeared when Scott shut his eyes. He fought to replace his glasses and looked over where Lily was. Suddenly the ground shot up from under him and toppled over him. All Scott could see was darkness as he was now surrounded by the earth. Blinking around everything disappeared as spikes shot themselves inside.

Lily held her shoulder as she crawled over to where Scott had once been. Tear filled eyes glared up at Morion who fought to keep himself from running to the girl who now had even more reason to hate him. He figured if she could be that angry with him then she was fine. Turning away, he left the institute as other students came running out to see what the commotion had been. Michelle crouched down next to Lily who shoved him away. Michelle wasn't surprised by this and only followed Morion away from the girl. He hadn't wanted to do such a thing but Michelle hadn't wanted to see Morion get hurt. As it was, with his powers, Scott could have easily killed Morion, but then if you look at it from another way, Morion could have killed Scott much faster. He probably just preferred playing around for a bit.

Blood pooled around Lily as she realized there was a gaping hole in her shoulder. She bit back a scream as she leaned forward and Kurt appeared right next to her. In the distance she could hear her cousin shouting for her and feel Bobby's presence with Jen. She closed her eyes for just a moment and suddenly felt someone shaking her. The beam had appeared out of nowhere and taken Lily by surprise. She could feel the shock from Scott and his guilt at having caused Lily such pain. She hated the guy, but he didn't deserve to die.

"Lily, open your eyes damn it," she heard Jen shout and Lily's eyes fluttered open. She looked over to find Bobby also leaning over her.

Behind the two Lily could just barely hear Micki. "We need to stop the bleeding somehow."

"God." Tears fell from Jen's eyes as she placed a hand over Lily's shoulder. "What do we do?" Another tear fell and Lily suddenly felt a chill. She watched as Jen's eyes widened. What Jen saw was her hand glowing a light blue as thin streams of a slightly darker blue weaved itself in and out of Lily's shoulder. Suddenly Lily was sitting up on her own and glancing around at her friends. She looked down at her shoulder which was now completely healed, clothes and everything. She glanced back at her cousin who was just staring down at her hand.

Lily smiled. "Looks like you've found yourself a new power."

Jen blinked up at her cousin. "New power?" She glanced once again at her hand. "I guess I have." Suddenly Jen was smiling as well.

AN: REVIEW PLEASE! I'd like thoughts. Opinions are always good, hehe.


	34. Chapter 34

AN: Sorry it took so long people but here it finally is, Chapter 34. I thank Micki and her wonderful side story that inspired me to finally write this chapter. Oh by the way, if you haven't read it yet, go read Micki's side story for this. It's called **Joining Together: Wolverine's Hunt**. I really like it and I'm sure you will too. You can find it under author name **Miximonkee**. And if you would like to see the lovely picture she drew me for my wonderful story please go visit my website. You can find the link on my profile.Thanks again Micki. Luvs it lots! And lots of luv to everyone else.

**Special Thanks to:**

******Marauder Heir**: Yeah… I'm happy Scott's dead too… But to think of the people in the story who actually care… Eh, oh well.

******Mercury Angel 1**: Glad you like your new power. Happiness! But anyway, here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

******Miximonkee**: Yeah… You know I didn't even realize you'd left your gift here till you said something? O.o… But yeah… I saw it just sittin' there in the middle of my room. Oh, by the way… Like the new account name lol. And here's a chapter just for you, cuz you inspired me to write, hehe. And yes, this is what I was writing when you sent me that IM, lol. Enjoy!

Chapter 34

_I'm so confused. I gain telekinesis, and Jen gains healing. Are there any other powers among our group that none of us know about? We thought we knew all there was to know about our powers, but that's two out of no where that have just appeared. There's more to us and I want to know what we're all capable of. I figure maybe it's time we start experimenting._

xXx

Jen walked into the small room, the smell of the hospital overwhelming her. Behind a curtain sat a familiar silver haired boy that Jen had once held very strong feelings for. Yellow eyes blinked up at her blankly, almost missing the fact that she was even there. Jen pulled up a seat, sitting down next to the boy.

She noticed how he just stared at his feet as if willing them to move. She shook her head, almost feeling sorry for him. Pity wasn't something that she thought the boy deserved. She was only here for answers that she'd been wanting for a long time now.

"Why Angel?"

The boy just continued staring at his feet, not acknowledging the fact that Jen was speaking to him.

"I asked you a question Angel."

"And why should I answer you?" His voice was raspy, as if he hadn't used it in the past few days he had been here. Jen shook her head. "I have no reason to explain myself to you."

"I deserve to know," Jen explained. "I deserve to know why you betrayed me." She sighed. "I cared so much. I was so happy," she told him, "and you destroyed that happiness. It's like I never really mattered to you."

"You mattered," Angel admitted. "Too much."

"How do I matter too much and you still go betray me? I want to know why you did it."

"Why did I do it?" Angel asked himself and grinned up at the blue haired girl. "Because I'm twisted."

"That doesn't make sense."

Angel reached out for the girl but she immediately pulled back, knowing he couldn't really move from his bed. He had been paralyzed. He would never be able to walk ever again.

"Why are you here Jen?" Angel asked her.

"For answers."

"That's not all," Angel pointed out smiling at her. "You still care, don't you?"

"I hate you," Jen responded and she sighed. "So I suppose, yes, in a way I do care."

Angel blinked not understanding the girl. "What do you mean you care? If you hate me doesn't that mean you don't care?"

"You're a smart boy Angel. Figure it out on your own." Jen rose from her seat, glaring down at the boy. "You're so pathetic." Jen then proceeded to leave the room.

"Wait!" Angel called out. "You can leave me! Jen, come back! Please!" But she had already walked out the door, leaving Angel alone once again.

xXx

"What more do you think I can do with my powers?" Tal asked Lily who was making a flame dance in the palm of her hand. "I control wind. There's nothing special about that."

"You never know," Lily told the girl. She closed her hand, snuffing out the dancing flame and finally looking up at Tal. "Use that wind to control yourself."

"Say what?" Tal shook her head. "You're delusional."

"Maybe… Maybe not." Lily grinned. "Have you ever wanted to fly?"

"You want me to use the wind to fly?" Tal's eyes widened and she shook her head. "Forget it. No. You're insane."

"But you already knew this," Lily explained, staring at Tal seriously. "Think of the advantages of being able to fly."

"Like what?"

"Getting places faster. Scouting out land for others before those who can't fly go traipsing into dangerous territory. Being out of an enemy's reach."

"Okay. Okay. I get the point," Tal cut into the dark haired girl's thoughts. "Geez, I get it. There are many advantages."

"Right. Now get to flying," Lily ordered and sat down on the ground, pulling out a book from her bag and reading it. Tal huffed and wind rose around her as she tried to figure out just how she would use it to make her fly. She thought it was ridiculous and that it would never work, but whatever just to make Lily shut up.

"Try wrapping your wind around yourself," Lily explained, nose still in the book.

Tal blinked, surprised that the girl could still give advice even when not paying attention, but then she mentally slapped herself. Lily was telepathic. Of course she didn't really have to pay attention… Not sight wise or hearing wise at least. All she had to do was throw herself into the girl's mind and know just what was going on.

Taking a deep breath, Tal wrapped the wind around her, concentrating on making it lift herself. Tal felt nothing and almost gave up when Lily's voice suddenly burst through her thoughts.

"Don't stop. Look down."

Looking down, Tal's eyes widened as she suddenly lost concentration and hit the ground hard. She groaned as she pushed herself up. "Well then…"

"Told ya so." Lily grinned, finally emerging from behind her book. She then stood and walked away, leaving Tal to her own devices.

Tal glared at Lily's retreating form, angry that the girl was some sort of know it all. But then, she already knew this. Why was it pissing her off now? But then Tal knew this as well. It was because Lily had known something about her before she herself had known. It just irked her in so many ways.

Tal's anger flared so much that wind rose around her, lifting her off the ground and sending her into the nearest tree. She groaned, placing her hand on the back of her head, cursing at her luck. If this is what flying would always be like, always causing her pain, she wasn't sure if she wanted to do it anymore.

"Stop letting it get to you," she heard a familiar voice say and looked up to see Micki staring down at her. "She's only trying to help."

"I doubt it." Tal pushed herself up, leaning back against the tree.

"Stop being so angry. She pushes you because she knows you can do it."

"But how did she know? I didn't even know. How can she know something about myself that even I didn't know?"

"She didn't know," Micki lectured the girl. "She wanted to see if you could. It was just a suggestion."

"And how would you know?"

"Can't you see it yourself? Just as she was suggested to test out her power. Just as Jen figured out she had another power. What about everyone else? What else is there? How far can each of us go? What more is there for us to know? She wanted answers."

"Why does it matter?" Tal shouted at the girl. "None of this matters. I don't care. I don't care if we each have more powers."

Micki was getting frustrated with this girl and her naivete. It was obvious she wasn't seeing the big picture here. "Talya, we're going to be in a war in who knows when. We need as many powers as possible. If we can expand our powers, that's all Lily's trying to help with."

"And what about you?" Tal asked.

"My power lies in my strength," Micki explained to the girl.

"Right… Your strength." Tal rolled her eyes. "Anyway, I've got things to do."

"Hey Tal…" Micki started.

"What?" Tal growled at the elf.

"Try losing the anger and maybe… just maybe you'll get it right."

"Oh, so are you Miss Know-it-All now?"

"It's just a suggestion."

"Well, I sure have been getting a lot of that lately." Tal snatched up her bag as the bell for class rang. "I'll see you later today."

xXx

Sakura sat alone in the TV room, doing almost absolutely nothing, the TV off for some odd reason. She threw some sparks back and forth in her hands, the lights dancing beautifully, each a bright color that Sakura never understood. Earlier she had spoken to Lily and the dark haired girl had suggested that maybe she try to expand that light and maybe she'd find out exactly what it was.

As Sakura tried to expand the dancing lights in her hand, something suddenly bright traveled across the room, hitting the TV and causing it to blow up. Sakura jumped up from her seat and blinked down at her hands then at the TV.

"Did you just blow up the TV?" Kitty asked walking up to the girl, but Sakura was unsure of what had just happened. Kitty reached out to the girl to drive her attention away from her hands but pulled back quickly as a shock of energy suddenly flew through her upon contact. "What's going on?"

"I… I don't know," Sakura explained.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say that was electricity," Logan explained walking up to the girl, Micki in tow.

"I agree," Micki stated. "I suggest going outside and using the trees as target practice."

"Um… yeah… Good idea." Sakura made her way past her friends and out of the institute back onto the training grounds. She blinked when Micki and Logan were following her.

"Just want to make sure you don't hurt yourself," Micki explained.

"And what about the two of you," Sakura asked.

"We can take care of ourselves," Logan explained leaning back against a tree as Micki sat and went into her meditative state. She'd missed her meditation earlier and right now was the perfect time. She could still keep an eye on Sakura while meditating, and if not, she trusted Logan to keep an eye out for all of them.

Sakura concentrated her energy, trying to make the dancing lights expand like they had before, only this time she was having trouble. She threw her hand out and instead blew up a tree. Shrinking back she sighed. She glared over at Micki who looked so peaceful, but shrugged it off as she went back to trying to figure out how to make the lightening bolt, as she deemed it so, appear again.

Night finally fell and Wolverine suggested they go back inside. "You can practice again tomorrow."

Sakura sighed and nodded. She was pretty tired from training for half the day. "Right… Sounds like a plan."

xXx

Jen sat alone in her room. Lily and Rogue were both out with their significant others, leaving Jen some time to herself. She would have spent it with Kurt, but thoughts filled her mind. Thoughts she wished she would never have ever again. The main thought being, "Did he ever really care?"

She stared up at Lily's bunk bed, pictures from her past running through her head. She'd cared so much. Why had she cared so much? Why had he meant so much to her? And why was she thinking about him again? Of course she'd never hold those feelings for him again. Her heart belonged to Kurt and always would. But for some reason she just needed to know. She had spoken to him earlier, yes, but it wasn't enough. She didn't exactly get the answers that she'd wanted, and instead had answered his questions. Why?

Jen rolled over on her side and threw up a smile when both her cousin and Rogue walked into the room, the two girls laughing as they kicked off their shoes and fell onto Rogue's bed. Jen figured she could worry about her problems tomorrow. She didn't want her cousin worrying about her, especially when she was finally so happy.


	35. Chapter 35

AN: Well, because of the fact that I tried to post chapter 34 yesterday and it wouldn't let me, you know get two chapters in a row, so here ya go. Enjoy!

Chapter 35

_So apparently I was right about everyone having other powers. It was amazing watching each of our powers grow. I mean, we spent all our lives with the powers we'd had before and never imagined they could go beyond what they already were. The others spent a lot of time training with their new powers, trying to get the hang of how to control it. I spent some of my time helping them, while I spent the other part of my time making sure Professor Grey was okay._

xXx

It had been a week now since Scott's death and Jean spent most of her time in her room, not even taking the time to teach her classes. Lily wasn't sure what to do with the woman. She'd been there and she'd known what it was like to lose a loved one. Hell, Lily lost her love on the day of her wedding. What could top that?

"Professor Grey?" Lily called out cautiously, pushing the woman's door open so she could peer in. Jean sat on the bed, staring at what seemed to be just thin air. Lily walked into the room and over to Jean, sitting down next to the woman. "Professor Grey, I know you're devastated to lose Scott, but please, you have to snap out of it." She waved her hand in front of Jean's face, hoping to get a reaction, a blink, anything, but alas, no reaction. Lily sighed and leaned back staring into thin air as well.

"Back when I was on Mars, I was engaged," the girl told her. "I was in love." Lily smiled. "It was the best time of my life. Then, on my wedding day, Angel killed him." Lily shook her head, letting out a heavy sigh. "That was the worst time of my life. I did nothing. I sat in a corner over by my window. It was comfortable enough. There were lots of blankets and pillows. But see, other than that, I never spoke, never ate, never reacted to anyone… I basically was nothing. I didn't exist. It's a wonder I even lived." Lily took Jean's hand. "But then one day he appeared before me and told me to live. He didn't like seeing me suffer."

Lily stood, positioning herself right in Jean's line of sight. Jean blinked up at the girl, face void of any emotion. "And I bet you Scott would tell you the same thing. You'll kill yourself this way Professor Grey."

"It would be better for everyone if I just died anyway," Jean finally said.

Lily shook her head. "No. Not yet. I'll decide that when the time comes." Lily then walked out of the woman's room, not saying another word until the door was shut behind her and she blinked back some tears. "No one deserves to be alone."

xXx

Jen watched as Micki took a knife, cutting herself on the arm. She then stuck her arm out to Jen. Sticking her hands over the wound, Jen concentrated her energy, visualizing in her mind that blue light weaving in and out of Micki's cut, till finally the wound was fully healed. Jen let out a deep breath as she was learning that healing took a lot out of her. It required her full attention and lots of energy that seemed to flow out of her and into the other person. She leaned back in her seat and watched as Micki wiped off the knife and tossed it to Logan who then stuck it in his pocket.

Logan's attention was fully focused on Sakura who had finally gotten the hang of the lightening bolt. It required a lot more work than her dancing lights or blowing things up from the inside. With this, Sakura had to see the bolt. She had to aim at what it is she wanted to shoot and then not only that. She also had to control the amount of electricity that she shot out. Whether she wanted to completely destroy something or she just wanted to strike something slightly to cause just enough damage depended on how much of her energy she had to throw into the bolt.

After hitting a few trees, Logan decided that Sakura should try moving targets. That target of course being himself. As he dodged back and forth out of the way of Sakura's bolts he quickly learned that the girl was soon picking up speed and that if she focused enough, she could make the bolt move in many different directions instead of just one straight path.

They didn't practice that long though being as the attacks were taking quite a bit of Sakura's energy. She eventually collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily from the use of multiple attacks, one right after the other.

"That's enough for today," Logan explained to the girl and blinked when he saw Lily heading in their direction. Upon her arrival he immediately asked, "How is she?"

"I at least got her to speak," Lily answered, and Logan nodded.

"That's a good thing."

Lily shrugged and sat down next to Sakura. "I guess. It could have gone better."

"What did you tell her?" Sakura asked.

"About Duo," Jen answered for the girl. Lily looked to her cousin who was sitting next to Micki not too far from them. "Why did you tell her about Duo?"

"It was the only thing I could think of it. It's just the same and well, I think she needed someone that could relate to her at the moment."

"Makes sense," Micki joined in.

Everyone jumped when Tal suddenly crash landed in the middle of their group. She pushed herself up, dusting off her clothes. Lily burst out laughing at the girl and Tal only growled.

"What's so funny?"

Lily pushed herself up from her seat and smiled at the blonde elf. "Let me help you."

"And how the hell do you suppose on doing that?" she asked angrily.

"I want you to just summon your wind," Lily instructed, "but not too much. Just enough to lift us."

"Us?" Tal rose an eyebrow at her friend. "I have enough trouble flying with just me."

"Trust me," Lily explained. Lily took both Tal's hands and forced herself into the girl's mind, forcing her to relax and lose her anger. Lily then helped her focus on the amount of wind that she would need to make them both fly.

Tal felt herself raise off the ground slowly and watched as Lily rose with her. Lily then threw an image into the girl's mind, forcing her to see the both of them move back and forth through the trees smoothly. Tal then found herself flying alone twirling around in the air, moving as freely as she wished, her wind wrapped firmly around her. Lily flew not too far from her smiling at the blonde elf.

"See? It's not that hard."

"How did you?"

"It's the same as using my mind to make myself fly," Lily explained as she landed on the ground, Tal landing right next to her. "You just have to see it in your mind and then feel it. You can't let anger consume you or else you can't do anything right. Wind is something gentle, and a wave of anger can just make it go out of control."

Tal blinked and nodded. Wind was her ability. She should have known this, but lately she was just so angry she wasn't thinking about how to actually control it. She just wanted to get the training done and over with and be able to move on with her life. But now that she thought about it, she wouldn't be able to move on with her life until the war was over anyway.

"Thank you," the blonde elf muttered and Lily smiled.

"Anytime."

"What are all of you doing out here?" Everyone looked over to see Gambit, and Lily nodded.

"Finished another mission I see," Lily said. "So where is she?"

"Inside," Gambit explained and Lily rushed past the boy towards the institute.

"Where is who?" Tal asked her boyfriend.

"White Queen," Logan answered for the boy.

"You brought White Queen here?" Tal asked eyes wide.

"I don't see why not," Jen cut in, rising from her seat. Micki rose from her seat as well and the two girls headed towards the institute.

Sakura just sprawled out even more onto the ground. "You guys go I have fun. I'll stay right here."

"Suit yourself," Logan commented and followed Gambit into the institute, Tal close behind the two.

Sakura just stared up into the sky, not really missing home, but at the same time getting very homesick. She hated the place and yet she didn't. What was up with that? The moon? She laughed. What was everyone's fascination with the moon anyway? To Earth it was just some huge chunk of round land with lots of craters on it. Sure, it looked pretty certain times but other than that, just what was their fascination with it?

Cold raindrops fell, landing on Sakura's forehead. She cursed as she realized that now she had no choice but to head inside. And just when she thought she had a chance to escape from everyone else. Sakura didn't mind being around the others, but lately with all their training, they had been together way too much. Sakura just wanted some time alone. Just her luck that the one time she does find time alone it starts to rain on her parade, literally. Gathering her stuff, she made her way back to the institute.

Inside, Sakura found everyone gathered at the front, gossip being spread through the students about the White Queen being there. No one seemed to understand why and Sakura didn't seem to care. She made her way through the crowd and up to her room… or near her room. She was stopped when Pietro suddenly stopped her, appearing out of nowhere. Sometimes Sakura hated this guy's speed.

"What is it Pietro?" Sakura asked.

"Have you seen Kat around?" the boy asked. "I think she's avoiding me."

"Can't you just search the whole institute in mere moments?" the girl asked, eyebrow raised.

"I did, and I found no sign of her."

"If she's not here, then she might have found a way to her secret spot."

"She has a secret spot?" the boy asked and Sakura nodded. "Do you know where this secret spot is?"

"Are you serious?" Sakura asked. "Don't you understand the meaning of secret? That's why it's secret. No one else knows. Geez." Sakura pushed past the boy and entered her room, throwing her stuff next to her bed. She then fell back on her bed and stared up at the ceiling. Lately everyone in their group had been a little crabby and Sakura guessed it was from all the constant training that everyone was doing. They were all wearing themselves out, and each one of them was probably itching for a chance to get out of the institute, though Sakura knew that would probably never happen. She rested her hand on her head, closing her eyes as she fell into a deep sleep.

xXx

Micki was in her room, staring at basically nothing, or it seemed like nothing, until some sort of form just suddenly appeared before her. For some reason she didn't seem too surprised as she just waved it off telling herself once again that she was just seeing things. The form disappeared and reappeared right beside her as she had flipped open one of her books and started taking notes. Ignoring the form next to her, Micki just assumed it was from fatigue. They had all been pretty busy lately and though she wasn't training for new powers like the others, she was helping them, and that in itself was tiring.

She yawned, rising from her positing at her desk and moving herself over to her bed, each step feeling like her feet weighed a ton. "They probably do," she decided and fell back onto her bed.

Micki's eyes widened as her blanket suddenly rose and fell down over her, cloaking her in its warmth. She quickly sat up, staring at the form that suddenly appeared smiling sheepishly.

"Maybe now you'll believe that we're real." And so it was, for the first time since she'd seen the first spirit, Micki finally believed that they were real and not just a figment of her imagination.

AN: Reviews… Please?


	36. Chapter 36

AN: Hey all. Here it is! Another chapter for my wonderful story. Please read and review. Enjoy!

**Special Thanks to**:

**Marauder Heir**: Hey child. Thanks for the review. I'm expecting another review from ya, lol.

**Miximonkee**: Hi hi! Thanks for a great review Claire! Happiness. I'm really glad that you enjoy the story so far. I hope I can continue to do as well! Can't wait till the next time I can see ya so I can give ya your gift. It's just kinda sittin' there now, especially since I cleaned up my room. Sighs. Luv ya girl. Give me a call sometime.

**Mercury Angel**: Lol, actually I forgot Scott died too and that's why Jeans chapter was a little late… Sweatdrop, heh. I really can't stand Scott. I just had to kill him off, lol. Anyway, here's another chappie. Enjoy and let me know what ya think. And Claire's got her side story goin'… Where's yours? Huh? Hehe! Luv ya cuz!

**Enjoy! And lots of luv!**

Chapter 36

_I know everyone was getting tired of training lately, but I just couldn't let them go into battle unprepared. I felt it coming. It was approaching fast, but we still had no idea which way it would go, if it was still humans against mutants or humans and mutants against… 'aliens'. I hate that word. I hate being clumped into one category. And what if they decide to attack the other planets after this? There are people on the planets without the ability to protect themselves. What do we do then? And from what I'd gathered last time, the planets were already at war. Am I worrying too much? Should I just let things unfold they way they will? Should I stop wondering and worrying about something I can't do anything about? I just don't know anymore._

xXx

Lily stared down at Emma Frost who only stared out the window blankly. She felt sorry for the woman, but at the same time thought she deserved to suffer just as much. Lily leaned down in front of woman, finally gaining her attention. Shaking her head, Lily stood once again. "It's your fault you know."

"You want to rub it in? Go ahead," Emma spat at her. "I know it was my fault. I didn't train them enough."

"You idiot!" Lily practically shouted. "It's not about how much you trained them. This would have happened anyway."

"Not if they were strong enough to defend themselves."

"But they were!" Lily lectured the woman. "Otherwise it wouldn't have taken us so many tries to destroy your school. The problem was in your beliefs. You can't even see the real problem here. You were so against everyone else it didn't matter that they might come to try and destroy you. You were so determined to hate the human race that you didn't see the mutants who actually tried hard to protect them… the ones who would even go behind your backs because they saw the truth. What if you were one of those people? How would you feel?"

"I'd rather die," Emma told the girl and went back to staring out the window. "There'd be no reason for me to live."

Lily screamed out in frustration and slammed her hand down on a desk. "Suite yourself. If that's what you think then fine. Forget it!" Lily rushed out of the woman's room, slamming the door behind her. She glanced over at Xavier who had stood outside waiting. Anger was clearly shown in her eyes and Xavier sighed sadly.

"Patience Lily."

"I don't have patience for this." She stomped down the hall, Xavier following closely behind her.

"Lily, I assigned you this task because I thought you could handle it," Xavier explained to the girl and stopped when Lily ceased her walking.

"I know Professor," she said without looking at the man. "I know you did, but I just… I hate stereotypes. I hate clumping people into categories, and I think it should never happen. I don't understand what goes on in people's minds, even if I can read their thoughts, it still makes no sense to me." Finally, she turned to face Xavier. "Professor, why did you decide to let us stay here even after the truth?"

"Because I understand how you feel Lily. To be shunned by others isn't a very pleasant thing, and even if you are aliens as they call them, you're still my student." He smiled when Lily was finally found crying. "I would never abandon you just as you would never abandon your friends."

"Thank you, Professor… for everything."

xXx

Logan was wandering around the Institute, trying to find a certain elf. He wasn't sure where she'd disappeared to, but for some reason he just really wanted to see her. He wasn't sure what it was, but ever since that first mission they'd been on, Logan had felt the need to be near the elf, and felt that she was the only actual person he could really talk to. He stopped when he reached some part of their woods where Micki was practicing. But it wasn't like any practice he'd ever seen her do before. She was sparing with Jen, and the elf moved with much more agility and speed than the blue haired girl. As far as Logan knew, Micki only possessed strength. Was this a part of her elven blood?

Logan's eyes widened when a small knife was suddenly thrown right past his head and hit a tree right behind him. Micki blinked at the man and shook her head.

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize it was you."

Jen glared at the man, her blue eyes filled with furry. She picked up a water bottle, practically chugging down the whole thing. She then picked up her bag and glanced over at her friend. "I'm going back to the Institute. We can train another day I guess."

"Yeah, see ya." Micki watched as Jen walked away, disappearing into the trees, and then focused her attention on Logan once again. "So what do you want? I didn't think anyone would actually find us out here."

"Do you two always spar like that?"

"It's something our group does to keep ourselves in shape," Micki explained, taking a seat under a tree. "We don't only rely on our powers to save us. That would be pure idiocy."

"That's true," Logan said and took a seat next to Micki.

"So, you didn't answer my question. What do you want?"

"I just… I don't know… wanted to see you." He blinked when Micki suddenly smiled at him. It was a very pretty smile he wasn't sure if he'd ever seen her with before.

"That's sweet, but I'm not worth it," the girl explained as she suddenly rose from her seat. "First of all, I'm much younger than you and second of all we're completely different from one another."

"Micki…" He reached out, taking her hand.

"Me and you are no different from one another."

"Sure we are. Don't you listen to all those other people out there?" Micki told the man. "You're a mutant and I'm an alien… and not just any alien… an elven alien."

"And you think I care?"

"Well you should."

"That's for me to decide."

Micki blinked and smiled. "Thank you, but I just don't think I'm ready."

xXx

Jen threw down her bag on her bed and sat down at the desk, opening up her laptop. She started typing away when Lily stormed into the room. Blinking, Jen turned to face her cousin, giving her a very questioning look, but Lily only shook her head and climbed onto her bed.

Jen shut her laptop and rose from her seat, making her way over to her cousin. "Lily, what's wrong?" she asked the black haired girl.

"I can feel it," Lily told her cousin. "Their anger… their hate… burning into me every single day. And it's not just that. They know of my ability so they purposely direct it towards me, causing it to hurt more."

"Lily…" Jen was halfway on the ladder, staring at her cousin's tortured face. She took the girl's hand and gasped when a wave of anger and hate suddenly hit her hard, causing her to let go of her cousin's hand and fall hard to the ground.

"Jen!" Lily was suddenly leaning over the bed staring down at her cousin, eyes full of worry. She didn't mean for the girl to feel what she'd felt. It wasn't meant for Jen and so she just tried to keep it to herself. Lily figured it was the bond between the two of them and now she knew she was a danger to her cousin.

Jen stared up at her cousin, fear filling her blue eyes. How was Lily able to withstand that pain every single day? Jen had felt the full force even though she also felt Lily try to block her from it. Their bond lately had grown stronger and so they were able to feel more between one another. That must have been why it hit her with full force, but just how? How did Lily do it? Jen stood from her spot on the ground and quickly moved back to her laptop. She opened it and quickly threw on some headphones.

"I have to study," she quickly told her cousin before she turned on her music loudly, trying to block out the pain that leaked out towards her from Lily.

Lily stared at her cousin, pain filling her even more than before. She didn't want to be a danger to her cousin. She didn't want to hurt anyone. How could she be around her cousin without causing her such great pain? Lily rolled onto her back staring up at the ceiling. Things were getting harder here on Earth. She just wanted it all to end.

Lily climbed off her bed and made her way past Jen and out the door. It was better for her to be away from the girl.

Jen stared at the door sadly, wishing she hadn't shut herself off from her cousin like that, but the pain had been unlike any other she'd witnessed before. People were purposely hurting her cousin and she didn't like it. No one deserved to go through that, especially when it was all of them that was hated and not just Lily. She pulled off her headphones and leaned back in her chair.

"Lily… What do we do now?"

xXx

Bobby was in the kitchen getting a soda when Lily suddenly wandered in, walking right past him. She hadn't even noticed his presence until he called for her and she jumped, turning to face him, hand at her heart. He blinked, wondering if she was alright, until she quickly threw up a smile for him.

"Hey Honey, what's up?" she asked him and Bobby shrugged off his worries.

"Just getting a soda. And you?"

"I was just lookin' for some cookies."

"Oh, there's some fresh ones over there I think." Bobby pointed to a corner. "Sakura just baked them I think."

"Oh, good." She grinned and went over, snatching up a few cookies. Taking a bite out of one, she let out a satisfactory moan and took another bite. "Cookies are my friend."

Bobby laughed and took a seat, Lily sitting down right next to him, cookies set neatly on a napkin in front of her. "Lily, has something been bothering you lately?"

Lily blinked at her boyfriend and shook her head. "No. Why?"

"It's just… You seem so distant lately. And just now when I called you, you were so deep in thought that you didn't even notice me."

"Huh… I guess I've just been a little worn out lately." She smiled, taking another bite from her cookies. "Nothing to worry about. It's all this training."

"Well, if you say everything's okay."

"I do." Smiling, she leaned over, placing a soft kiss on Bobby's cheek. "Don't worry 'bout me Honey. Besides, you're the one with a bunch of enemies now. You've sided with the wrong people it seems." She shrugged and finished off her cookies. "Not that it matters to me. They can think I'm the enemy if they want. I don't care anymore." She smiled. "As long as I know there are still people who care, it's fine."

"Lily…" Bobby smiled and pulled his girlfriend into his embrace. "That's good."

xXx

Kat was wandering the halls looking for dare she say it, Pietro. Lately he'd been hanging around her so much, she found him annoying, but today she hadn't seen or heard from him once and somehow she found it kind of lonely without him around. She didn't know when she'd started to actually want him around, but she didn't like it. She growled and just about gave up her search when she felt a brush of wind travel past her and a door open and slam shut quickly.

Blinking, Kat walked towards that door and slowly opened it, peeking inside. Was this Pietro's room? She'd never been to his room before and so she never really knew where it was.

It was dark in the room, but luckily she was used to the dark. In the corner she found someone huddled under some blankets. There was a cough and some shuffling and Kat figured the boy was sick. She made her way over to him and sighed, pulling the blanket off him.

Pietro blinked up at the girl and grinned. "Hey, you're the last person I expected to see today."

"Did you tell anyone you were sick?" Kat asked, throwing his blanket back at him.

"Nah. It's nothing really, just a small cold." He felt Kat's warm hand against his forehead.

"You're burning up. It's not just a small cold. Lay down. I'm gonna go get some cloths and some cold water." She then left the room, leaving a very happy Pietro. What more could he ask for than to be taken care of by the very girl he fell for?

xXx

"Bobby, has Lily been acting weird around you?" Jen asked the boy. She'd sought him out after Lily had returned to the room. Jen figured it was her chance to go talk to Bobby and fill him in on things.

"Yeah, but she said it's just cause she's been worn out lately," Bobby told the girl as they were walking outside. "Why?"

"It's not true," Jen told him and stopped when she notice Bobby stop. She turned to face him and sighed. "The people here, they're hurting her."

"What do you mean?" Bobby asked.

"You know how me and Lily have a really strong bond between us, right?" Jen asked and Bobby nodded. "Well, I went to touch her today and this wave of pain hit me so hard. Thoughts were filling Lily's head with hate and anger. They know of her ability and so they throw it at her painfully. It was so intense I could barely last just a few seconds. But what worries me is that Lily endures it every single day." Jen sighed.

"Wait… What? They're throwing their hate and anger at her purposely?" Bobby asked. "But can't she just block it?"

Jen shook her head. "You see, Lily has been worn out lately and building a block requires a lot of energy from her. And it's different when thoughts are actually sent directly at her. She's receives anything that is sent to her."

"That's harsh," Bobby said sighing. "Why didn't she tell anyone?"

"You think she wanted to worry all of us?"

"You said it was really intense?" Bobby asked the blue haired girl and Jen nodded. "If it's so painful, why can she endure it for so long?"

"She doesn't have a choice." The pair turned, their gazes landing on Xavier. "Lily doesn't have a choice but to receive their thoughts and her only choice is to force herself to stand tall everyday. She can't let them have the satisfaction of winning. Lily's strong. She'll get through this. Just believe in her."

"But how do you know about it Professor?" Jen asked.

"I may not be able to read her thoughts, but I can read the thoughts of all my other students. I know what they're doing. We can't help Lily. Only she can pull herself through this," Xavier explained smiling at the pair. "Have some faith in your friend. It'll work out. You'll see."

AN: Hey, hope you all enjoyed that chapter. I'll try to get another one up soon. Reviews please!


	37. Chapter 37

AN: Yay! Chapter 37. Now that wasn't a long wait was it? Too bad I don't always update that soon, lol, but I do have a life. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy. Please let me know what you think afterwards.

Special Thanks to:

**Marauder Heir**: Lol, yay for the cookies, hehe. THANKS BUDDY! Lots of luv!

**Miximonkee**: Hehe, I'm really happy you're enjoying my story Buddy! Lots of happiness. I updated this just for ya! Lol. When ya told me how happy you were to get the notice for the last chapter you have no idea how happy I was. Well, obviously happy enough to write more, lol. I hope you enjoy this chapter as well. Luvs!

**Mercury Angel**: Hehe, yeah I loved the scene between Micki and Logan as well. Was cute, hehe. And whatever you write for the side story I know I'll love, so don't worry. Hugs! Lots and lots of hugs!

**Luv to all!**

Chapter 37

_I know they hate me, but I just couldn't comprehend why. Aren't we all the same? I mean, sure, I'm from another planet. But so what? It's just the same as someone being from another country, isn't it? Am I just delusional? Is what I'm thinking completely wrong? Are we really that different?_

xXx

Lily was kneeling in the shower, warm tears mixing into the hot water that beat hard against her back. She gripped her hair tightly, trying not to rip it out. Waves of pain rushed through her, almost sending her into a world of darkness. They were trying to kill her. They were hoping their attacks would kill her. Lily had never been so scared of death before, but now she knew she wanted to live. She took deep breaths, trying to calm herself before she exited the shower and all the other girls saw her in such a state.

Forcing herself to stand, Lily took one more deep breath and waited a moment so it didn't look like she had just been crying. Shutting off the shower faucet, she reached out for her towel and wrapped it tightly around her. Stepping out, she looked at the mirror and was satisfied that she actually looked okay. She walked past the other girls and out into the hall. She made her way back to her room where Jen and Rogue were sitting over on Rogue's bed, engaged in some sort of conversation.

Lily didn't even bother paying attention to the two girls. Ever since what happened between her and Jen the other day, the two made sure to keep their distance from one another. Lily walked over to the dresser and pulled out some clothes, which she quickly slipped on. She took a brush to her hair making sure to carefully brush out all of her tangles.

Every now and then Lily could feel Jen's gaze on her, but she made sure to ignore it and continued with whatever she was doing. Lily sat at the desk and turned on the computer that her and Rogue shared. Signing into her account, she attempted to finish her report for Jean's class, who of course still wasn't teaching her own class. Logan would just come in everyday, give them their assignments and leave. Later Storm would do the grading and everything.

Jen, who had been talking with Rogue the whole time, was now by herself as Rogue had left to go meet up with Colossus. The blue haired girl watched her cousin typing away on the computer and sighed. She hated this distance between the two of them, but Jen didn't want to experience that pain again, and she knew Lily would do everything to make sure Jen didn't.

She stood from her seat on Rogue's bed, grabbed her bag and slipped on some shoes. She decided she would go find Kurt. It had been awhile since she'd had a decent day with the blue boy, and she figured today was the perfect day to make up for that. She rushed out the door and made her way down the stairs to Kurt's room. She knocked on the door, but received no answer. She sighed and made her way all the way downstairs to the TV room. There was no one in there that she wanted to hang out with. Although it was a movie she'd wanted to see, she figured it wasn't worth it to watch with a bunch of people who hated her.

She continued on past the TV room and out the front doors, which took her outside in the bright sun. Placing her hand over her eyes she searched around to see if there was anyone even remotely worth talking to, but alas, there was no one. Sighing, she decided it was the woods for her today. Luckily she'd brought a book with her, which was tucked nicely away in her bag.

Jen stopped when she reached the part of the woods that she and Micki had been sparring at the other day. She was irritated that they had been interrupted, but that's just how Jen was. She hated to be interrupted during one of the sparring sessions or during training. She took a seat under a tree and pulled her book out of her bag. It was a bit lonely out here, but it was even lonelier sitting in a room with a cousin who wouldn't speak to you for fear of hurting you.

xXx

Lily finished her report and printed it out. She'd hated to ignore her cousin like that, but the both of them felt the need to be apart for now. Lily had closed herself off as much as possible from her cousin and it hurt to do so, although not as much as the attacks coming from the other students. Their thoughts burned her deep inside, always sending her into a world of pain. Currently she was trying to figure out a way to fend them off.

She stood from her seat and made her way out of the room. She had things to do, like taking care of Emma. Xavier had unfortunately put her in Lily's care even though Lily really wasn't in the mood to take care of anyone else other than herself at the moment. The only reason Lily did this was because Xavier had done so much for them and Lily felt that she owed the man almost everything.

She made her way down to the kitchen and grabbed some food and a glass of water for the woman. Lily didn't really care for Emma, but knew it was wrong to just leave the woman with nothing. It wasn't in Lily to be so mean.

Lily walked into Emma's room and sighed at the sight of the woman. She was still over there staring out the window. Setting the tray of food on a small table, she started straightening up the woman's room, just as she did every day since Emma had arrived. Lily was about to leave the room when Emma suddenly spoke to her.

"It hurts, doesn't it?"

Lily blinked and walked a bit closer to Emma. "What?"

"Their thoughts… It hurts, right?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Lily quickly told the woman and started once again towards the door.

"I'm sorry you have to go through that." Emma turned away from the window to face Lily. "You're one of those aliens they talk of, aren't you? That's why they hate you, isn't it?"

Lily looked once again at Emma and sighed. "What do you want Emma?"

"To help you."

"And how do you suppose on doing…" Lily's words were cut off when Emma rose from her chair and pulled the girl into her embrace. Lily didn't know what to make of this.

"The one you really want help from, Jean, is incapable of it isn't she? She's very unstable at the moment."

Lily nodded, just letting the woman hold her close. It felt good to have someone understand her pain, even if that someone was the enemy. And then Lily quickly pushed away, glaring at the woman. "You know nothing." She quickly ran out of the room fighting back tears. "I hate her," Lily told herself.

She stopped when she found herself in front of Jean's door. She stared down at the doorknob, debating whether or not she should go in. Deciding on yes, she pushed the door open and stared in at Jean who just sat on her bed, once again staring at thin air. Lily entered the room, shutting the door behind her.

"Did you come to lecture me again?" Jean asked the girl, not once looking at her.

"N-no" Lily sighed and walked over to Jean. "I just wanted to see how you were doing."

"The question is how are you doing?" Jean asked.

"What?"

"You came to see if I could help, didn't you?"

"No… that's not why!" Lily told her.

"Then why are you here?"

"I told you… To see how you were doing."

"Don't you have someone else you're supposed to be taking care of?"

"You're my Professor!" Lily shouted at the woman. "If I should be taking care of anyone it's you. You helped me to develop my powers. You saw in me what I didn't see and you had such faith in me and I never understood why." Lily stared down at the ground angrily. "Never mind. I knew you really hated me."

"You won't get any sympathy from me," Jean told her, now looking at the girl, eyes filled with hate.

Lily's eyes widened as she realized this wasn't the Professor that she had come to love. "You were the first one," Lily explained. "You accepted me for who I truly was before anyone else even knew. I thought…"

"You thought wrong. Get out."

Lily wanted to say something more, to protest somehow, but what was there to say? She shook her head and turned towards the door. "You may hate me Professor Grey, but somehow… I really don't know when, you became my favorite Professor… and you still are." Lily then opened the door and left Jean's room.

xXx

"There are angry people everywhere," Xavier told Storm and Logan. "It seems that the knowledge of there being aliens on Earth has angered them more than the idea of mutants."

Logan stared at the TV, watching the people angrily shouting for death to all aliens. Some were even saying how they should find ways to attack the other planets. It angered him that they could hate someone so much for no reason at all.

"They've even started siding with some mutants," Xavier continued to explain. "The lives of those girls are in serious danger, and if there are anymore aliens out there, they're going to die if they are discovered."

"It just doesn't make sense," Storm joined in. "I don't understand how even the mutants can hate the aliens. They're no different from us."

"People don't care," Logan said. "If there's something new that they don't understand they automatically learn to hate it. It doesn't matter if they're human or mutant. They're all the same. They all think alike."

"Can't we just send those girls back to their home planets?" Storm asked.

"And what good would that do us?" The three adults each turned their attention to the door where Jen was standing. "If we go back they're still going to hate us and they will eventually find a way to invade our planets. They can get to the moon. I'm sure they'll be able to get to our planets." Jen glanced around at each of the adults. "And we all have a mission here that our parents entrusted us with. We have to protect Earth from the other aliens."

"To protect Earth? So is that why you all came here?" Xavier asked.

"No," Jen answered matter of fact. "We all came because we were curious. We were forbidden to ever be on Earth, let alone even observe it. Sure they taught us about Earth in school, but it's not the same as actually seeing it. We wanted to see what Earth was like and what made it so different from us." Jen entered the room, shutting the door behind her. "It wasn't until we had all gathered here that Micki appeared with a letter from our parents stating that there was a war staging outside of Earth. Planets are being taken over by the enemies and they're trying to fight them off. Along with that news came the news that our people were escaping to Earth. Of course we knew it was mostly royalty or military being as they're the only ones with portal keys."

"What's a portal key?" Storm asked.

"It's a key that opens up a portal for any place you want to go. You just have to know the code for the general location," Jen explained. "That's what we each used to get here. The only one without a portal key is Mara."

"So how did she get here?" This time it was Logan.

"She followed someone. How else?" Jen sighed. "Anyway, the point is we're here on Earth and we were given strict orders to protect it from the enemies. It's our mission and we can't go back home until we know that Earth is safe."

Xavier nodded, smiling at the blue haired girl. "I understand. Thank you for informing me of this."

"I thought you should know," Jen started. "Now that you finally know about us and our people it was only fair that I inform you of the war."

"So there's a war going on between the other planets?" Storm asked and Jen nodded.

"Yes. It's a very harsh one. Probably the biggest one the Planets have ever been in." Jen shook her head. "I worry about our parents. We all do. But we can't worry about that, because while that war is going on, there's one forming here. We're here to win that war, or if possible prevent it. Though the way things are going, there's no preventing it."

"Jen, how's your cousin doing?" Xavier asked and regretted the question when he saw the girl's eyes grow distant and cold.

"I wouldn't know. We haven't spoken since the day."

"I see. I'm sorry to hear that." Xavier nodded. "Thank you for the information Jennifer."

"You're welcome Professor." Jen then left the three adults to contemplate everything that she had just told them. She blinked when she came face to face with her cousin.

"Lily…"

Lily smiled at her cousin. "Looks like we both had the same idea."

"What?"

"I was on my way to tell them about the war."

"Lily…" Jen smiled. They may be keeping their distance lately, but it was a comfort to know that they were both still thinking very much alike. "Great minds do think alike."

"That they do." Lily's smile quickly disappeared as she turned away from her cousin. "Well, since you did it for me, I'll go to the library to study."

Jen watched her cousin's retreating back until she turned a corner and disappeared from her sight. Her eyes once again became distant as that lonely feeling once again overwhelmed her.

AN: You like? You hate? Hopefully like, hehe. Please review. Lots of luv!


	38. Chapter 38

AN: Well, here's another chapter, a lot sooner than I thought I'd have it up. Yay! I hope you all enjoy. Please read and review.

Special thanks to Miximonkee and Marauder Heir.

**Luv to all!**

Chapter 38

_I knew I had to find out just what was happening. We all knew that some mutants were siding with humans, but that still didn't mean anything. It just meant that some really did hate us that much. I knew just who to ask though._

xXx

Lily had been sitting in her room, completely bored and with no cousin to hang out with. She'd been thinking a lot about the upcoming war, nothing else able to fill her mind. She rolled onto her side and stared at the door knowing very well that no one would be walking through it.

Having decided on something to do, Lily slipped off her bed and headed out the door. Climbing down a couple flights of stairs, she headed right for Kat's room. She knew the girl was in her room being as she'd already done a search for her. Stopping in front of the girl's room, Lily reached up and knocked. There was no answer. Grinning, Lily threw a message into the girl's mind and suddenly the door was opened.

"What the hell do you want Lily?"

"Your reading."

"My…" Kat blinked and sighed, finally moving out of the way so the shorter girl could enter her room. "What do you want me to read into?"

"The war," Lily answered taking a seat on the girl's bed. "I need to know who the war will be against."

"If you want that, why can't you just ask if you guys will win the war?"

Lily's eyes darted to the side where she finally realized that there was another presence in the room. She glared at the boy sitting at Kat's desk and finally turned away shrugging. "Don't you know? Kat can't use her powers for things like that. If she did, it would only make other people lazy thinking that they could win and next thing you know we lose. Her predictions don't always come true."

"Then why are you here?" Pietro asked.

Lily gazed up at Kat and the taller girl nodded, finally taking a seat next to Lily. "The war…" Kat closed her eyes. Her ability was reading into the future. Her predictions were always right, but whatever she predicted wasn't always the outcome. Sometimes her predictions are made just so you can change the future and sometimes they're something to work towards or for. It always depended on how the person asking for the future saw things, and her predictions can always change depending on the person's actions.

"The war," Kat started, "is very unclear." She gazed down at Lily. "It's still forming and nothing is for certain yet."

Lily sighed and nodded. "I figured." She forced a smile. "Thanks for your help." Rising from her seat she felt a warm hand softly take hold of her own.

"Lily… The pain, you'll have to endure it a little longer, you know that right?"

Lily blinked at her friend and a warm smile graced her lips, her eyes shining brightly at the caring girl. "Thank you Kat. I know this already."

xXx

Logan stood outside Jean's room just staring at her door. He wanted to go in and check on her to see how she was doing, but very few people were allowed to do that. Actually, from what he knew only two people were permitted to do that. From what he'd heard, Jean was unstable and dangerous. He didn't understand what that meant. No one really explained anything to him.

"Do you still love her?"

Logan blinked and stared down at Micki who was standing next to him. How long had she been there? "Do I…?" Logan shook his head and returned his gaze to Jean's door. "I did once, but it was a one sided love."

"How did you get over it?" Micki asked the man.

"I met someone more important and more interesting."

Micki blinked and smiled up at the man. "She can't be that much more interesting."

"Oh, I think she is." Logan smiled down at Micki. "Hungry?"

"Yeah, I think I am."

xXx

Jen was outside throwing icicles at a tree, aiming at one particular spot. Her aim wasn't perfect but she was getting there. Before she never really worried about it. As long as she could hit the person that she was shooting at it was fine, but now with a war coming up she wondered if that would be enough. She would have to be able to knock the person out with at least one or two hits instead of multiple hits just to tire them out or weaken them.

Kurt sat in a tree watching his girlfriend intently. She'd been working hard lately and he admired her dedication. If she wasn't practicing with her abilities then she was out sparring with Micki or one of her other friends.

"Jen, it's getting late out. Shouldn't we be heading inside already?" Kurt asked the blue haired girl.

"You go ahead Kurt. I want to train a bit more."

"Jen, you're going to tire yourself out like that." Kurt teleported right next to his girlfriend. "Please, let's go inside. It's getting cold anyway and you don't have a jacket."

"It's not like the cold really bothers me."

"Jen baby what's wrong?"

At this question, Jen threw her icicle far away from the tree. She stared up at her boyfriend and blinked. "Why do you think something's wrong?"

"I can tell. Is it because of your cousin?"

Tears formed in the girl's eyes but she quickly blinked them back angrily. "She suffers and I can't do anything to help her. I'm useless." She turned away from the blue boy, staring angrily at the spot she'd been throwing her icicles.

"That's not true," Kurt told her.

"Yes it is. I'm not even there to support her because I'm so scared of those attacks. I don't want to witness that again."

"Then get over your fears," Kurt ordered her and Jen looked up at her boyfriend to see him staring at her angrily. "Damn it Jen if you care so much do something about it. Get over your fears and be there for her to comfort her through all the pain. You fuming about it and taking your anger out on a tree isn't going to help her. At least if you can be there to comfort her she might be able to endure the pain a little bit more."

Jen couldn't believe her boyfriend. She'd spent the past few days just avoiding her cousin and not even being there to comfort her. Jen never really thought how that just might help her. And now instead of being angry at not being able to help her cousin in any way, she was ashamed of herself. How could she be so blind? She knew her cousin better than anyone and yet here Kurt was telling her that her cousin needed her and Jen couldn't even see that.

"Kurt…"

"Well? What are you standing here for?"

Jen smiled sweetly at her boyfriend and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks." She then ran past him and up to Institute. Bursting through the door she used her connection with her cousin to find where Lily was. She blinked when she realized even through all the pain Lily was still worrying about the war and just how they might be able to win it. "And Kurt said I was dedicated." She shook her head. "Lily, you possess the most dedication of us all." Jen ran up the stairs and stopped when she found her cousin standing in the hall just outside Jean's room. Smiling, she made her way towards her cousin.

Lily, sensing someone approaching her, slowly turned her gaze to the form nearing her. Her eyes widened as she saw her cousin stop right in front of her. "Jen? What are you doing here?"

"I've come to support ya cuz. I may not be able to handle the pain and so I may not be able to even touch you, but at least I can be here to support you."

Lily blinked and then smiled. "You don't have to do that."

"Lily, stop pushing people away. Stop acting like you're the only one here and so you have to endure everything by yourself. There are others here and we can share the pain. Stop doing everything by yourself."

"What am I doing by myself?" Lily asked.

"The war. It's all you've been able to think about. I read your mind. I know." Jen shook her head. "We are all a part of this war and we'll all work together to fight it and win."

Lily hadn't thought about it actually. She didn't realize that she was doing everything by herself, but now that she thought about it, she'd been pushing everyone so much, but not as much as she had been pushing herself. She just wanted to fix everything. She wanted people, humans and aliens to be able to live together. She wanted to fix Jean's pain. She wanted to help Professor Xavier in anyway possible to make up for everything he had done for them. Most of all, she wanted to be able to protect her friends.

"Thanks Jen. You really are the best cousin a person could ever ask for."

"So do we finally have that settled?" Both girls turned to face Micki who only grinned at them. "I'm happy to finally see you two talking to one another."

"Micki…" Lily laughed. "So you expected this."

"Somehow…" Micki nodded. "A little voice told me." Both girls watched as Micki winked at no one and they glanced at each other confused. They both fixed their gaze once again on Micki but the elf only shrugged and turned away, leaving the two cousins to stand in the hallway alone and confused about Micki's 'little voice'.

AN: Well? Good? Bad? Like? Hate? Love even? Let me know what ya think. Luv ya all! REVIEW!


	39. Chapter 39

AN: So who's been waitin' for this chappie. Smiles. This chapter actually took me a while to write. O.o Lol. I usually finish my chappies whatever day I start. But anyway, enjoy and let me know what you think.

Special Thanks to:

**Miximonkee**: THANKS BUDDY! Lol.

**Mercury Angel**: Lol, yeah, I wanted to knock some sense into Jen too lol.

**Marauder Heir**: ….. You worry me child, lol.

**Luv to all!**

Chapter 39

_So me and Jen were finally talking again. It was actually quite a relief. Having her by my side made things much easier, and life a little more bearable. And then there's that growing relationship between Micki and Logan that I find all too adorable._

xXx

"Hey Lily," Jen started. The two girls were in their room studying. Jen on her laptop and Lily pretty much glued to her book.

"Hm?" Lily asked, not looking up from her book except to write notes.

Jen turned from her laptop, glancing over to where her cousin lay sprawled out on the floor. "What do you think Angel was thinking? Why did he do the things he did to us?"

Lily blinked and finally looked up at her cousin. "Why are you asking me? Why not ask the actual person himself?"

"I tried," Jen explained, "but I got nothing out of it." Jen sighed and turned back to her laptop.

Lily shook her head, her eyes not leaving her cousin's back. She wondered if this was what Jen had been worrying over the past few days. If so, she didn't understand why. Sure, Jen had at one time had very strong feelings for Angel, but Lily thought she was past that. Hate burned inside Lily for Angel. Sure, she could never kill the guy just like that now, but given a reason she wouldn't hesitate. In fact, she already had almost killed him. Angel was just lucky to be still alive.

Lily had wanted to search Jen's mind to see if she did still hold feelings for a killer, but knew Jen would be able to tell. Anyway, it wasn't any of her business. Jen had Kurt now. Lily figured it might just be her. But now she had something more important than school work to do.

Lily pulled off her glasses, which she only really used for reading purposes. Pushing herself up, Lily gathered up her books and threw them onto her bed. She then grabbed a sweater, slipped on some shoes and made her way out the door.

"Where you going?" Jen asked her.

"Out. I'll be back in a bit." Lily smiled back at her cousin and then shut the door behind her.

Jen leaned back in her chair, staring at the door. Lily was up to something and curiosity just might be the death of her today. She shut her laptop and stood from her seat. She too slipped on some shoes and grabbed her sweater, also heading out the door. As she made her way down the hall, she turned invisible so her cousin wouldn't see her. Jen kept her distance still and made sure she blocked off her mind from her cousin, hoping her cousin wouldn't sense her.

Jen grew even more curious as Lily made her way towards the gates and threw her hood up. "Where could she be going?" Jen asked herself. "We're not really allowed to leave the Institute." She blinked when Lily took a right. "Is she going to the hospital? She's going to go talk to Angel?" Jen saw Lily start to look around, and ducked away when Lily's gaze passed her, telling herself she was an idiot for doing so. _You're invisible, Jen. She can't see you. If she spots you it's because she sensed you. What's the point in ducking for cover. _She was brought out of her thoughts when Lily suddenly ran around a corner and across the street. Jen, unsure of why, quickly followed, just missing the cars.

_Wow! Is following my cousin really worth my life?_ she asked herself as she made her way through the crowd of people after her cousin. She had to dodge people so no one would notice her. Good thing for her training with Micki. She had to be at least semi fast to dodge that girl. She grinned when she saw Lily enter through the hospital doors. _Knew it._

She quickly ran through the doors before they could close again. Lily was at the front desk getting a guest pass from the receptionist. She watched as Lily clipped the pass to her sweater and then made her way to Angel's room. Lily didn't even knock. She just threw open Angel's door and just waltzed right in.

"Well, hello Lily," Jen heard Angel say. She glanced around the curtain to see Lily take a seat next to Angel's bed. Lily smiled at the boy. "Didn't expect to see you here."

"Yeah well ya know. I'm full of surprises." She leaned back in her chair. "So I came to talk Angel. I hear my cousin came to visit you awhile ago."

"That she did. Came as quite a surprise."

"Yeah. To me too." Lily shrugged. "And so I came to ask you."

"Ask me what?"

"What were you thinking? Why did you do it? Did you really love my cousin at any time the two of you were together?"

Angel began to laugh. "Not once did you ever me love huh? Not once did you ever return my feelings. And you know what? The whole time I knew. And the whole time I knew that I didn't really love you. Sure, at one point I thought I did, but after some time it was just an obsession. You were something I'd claimed. A mission."

"A mission? So I was just an object for you?"

Angel sighed and nodded. "Let me start from the beginning."

"You better." Lily was now glaring at Angel. He had thrown away his future for an object? She was just an object? No one ever treated her as an object. No one!

_ Angel was walking through the school, searching for the girl of his dreams. She was very popular among the other students. She would always treat everyone equal to herself even if she was a princess and people respected that. She didn't think that she was better than anyone else, but she also had a stubborn streak about her. She knew how to get what she wanted, when she wanted and she was always so determined. She didn't let other people trample all over her and she was always protecting other people, even if it put herself in danger. But what Angel loved most about her was her fiery attitude. Nothing ever got her down._

_There she was, packing her books into her bag. A girl with blue hair walked up to her… her cousin. Lily started laughing and shut her locker, slinging her bag over her shoulder. She took her cousin's hand and the two headed off to class._

_"Lily," Angel called out to her._

_Lily stopped and turned to face Angel, a smile brightening her face at the sight of him. "Angel, I see you came in today."_

_"Where were you yesterday?" he'd heard Jen ask. Angel turned his attention to the blue haired girl and threw on a smile. This girl was Lily's best friend, the one she was most attached to, the most important person to her. Angel was almost jealous of her._

_"I was at home sick."_

_"That seems to be happening a lot. Mom's had a lot of sick patients lately."_

_"Yeah," Lily joined in. "Aunt Ami told me the other day that something was going around. She told me to be careful." Lily shrugged. "Hope I don't catch it."_

_"Oh, you will," Jen told her. "Not trying to be mean or anything but you get sick a lot and very easily."_

_"You do Lily?" Angel asked surprised. "But you're always in school and you always look perfect fine."_

_"She's a good actress," Jen explained._

_"Oh." Angel shifted on his feet. "Lily, I've been meaning to ask you something." Lily only blinked at him, waiting for him to continue. "Would you go to the dance with me?"_

_"Aw, Honey, I'm sorry but me and Jen decided on no dates this year. It's such a hassle having all those guys ask and then someone always gets into a fight over it." Lily looked up when she heard the bell and then focused her attention once again on Angel. "Anyway, me and Jen have to get to class. We've got our presentation today."_

_Angel watched as she walked away, arm looped through her cousin's this time. Lily might talk to a lot of people, but there were only a chosen few that she stuck so close to. "I will have you," he told himself, finally deciding that he wanted Lily._

_xXx_

_"Angel, I've told you before, I don't see you like that." Lily sighed and sat back in her seat staring up at the ceiling._

_"Lily, why? Are you interested in anyone?"_

_Lily blinked and smiled, looking directly at Angel. "I am, but I don't think I even exist to him."_

_Angel's anger started burning deeply, completely skipping hurt. Who out there was more worthy of Lily's affection than him? Where did he go wrong? He was always there for her and he did whatever she wanted. He acknowledged her existence and she likes someone she thinks doesn't even know she exist?_

_"Why Lily?" Angel asked the girl. "I've done so much for you."_

_"You have," Lily admitted, "and that's why you're one of my dearest friends."_

_"That's it?" Angel took a deep breath trying to calm himself._

_"I'm sorry Angel." Lily smiled. "But why not date my cousin? She's really in love with you Angel."_

_"Jen is?" Angel blinked at the girl. He'd never noticed before. He only really saw Jen hang out with two people who were Lily and Micki. She was pretty quiet sometimes but did have a temper on her._

_"Try it," Lily insisted. "Maybe it might work out."_

_xXx_

_Angel sat alone in his room, thoughts running through his head about what he should do. If he couldn't get to Lily this way, maybe he could get to her through her cousin. At least that's what he thought at the time. Angel knew it was a long shot, but he was willing to do anything. The person Lily hung out with most was Jen. Or so he thought until he asked Jen out and they started going on their so called dates. Lily never seemed to mind and would always just go hang out with one of her other friends._

_Most of Angel's time after that had been spent on Jen, and after some time he found himself enjoying those days with her. Lily slowly drifted from his mind until one day when he asked for Jen's hand in marriage. Angel realized then that he really did love Jen, but that he wasn't as ready for marriage as he'd like to be. Sure, he wanted to marry Jen, but not just yet. But it was his family's wish, and he seemed to be pushed along by the other adults. Angel couldn't take the pressure. And so maybe that's why he returned to liking Lily, and destroyed his future by ruining his relationship with his fiancé._

_After that day on Jen's birthday, the one day Lily had been without Duo, Angel approached the girl. She hadn't said anything to him. Only gazed up at him and he could sense that she knew. Everything that had happened she knew was a lie, but Angel was still determined to make her his because it had been his mission to start with and now he just wanted to see if he could. It was just a game now, and Lily was the treasure. She was just the most important object in his game._

_After killing Duo, he hated that distant look in Lily's eyes, but most of all he hated the anger… the hate that burned in Jen's. It hurt more than he would have ever imagined it to, but he ignored it, and that's when he turned so cold. That's when all the killing began. That's when he learned to make himself not care. His friendship with Lily gone. His love for Jen disappeared. All that burned in him was obsession… obsession for the two most important people in his game._

xXx

Lily stared at the young boy in the bed, sadness clearly written in her eyes. "So you really did love her." Lily shook her head. "Angel, today… at this very moment… and I want the truth. Do you still love Jen?"

"Unfortunately… with all my heart."

Lily nodded and stood from her seat. "Thank you. I'll leave the two of you alone then."

Jen's eyes widened as Lily's and Angel's gaze fell right on her. She appeared in her corner, staring at the two, cursing herself for falling for Lily's trap. She watched as Lily walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her. She gazed back at Angel who was looking away from her.

"I don't love you," Jen simply told him.

Angel sighed and finally looked up at her, eyes piercing sadly into her own. "I know, and I don't blame you."

Jen, taken back by this took a deep breath and finally sat down. "I love Kurt. He's the most important person in my life."

"I know, and I'm happy for you."

Jen, once again surprised by Angel's words, shook her head. "How can I believe that? How can I trust your words?"

"You can't."

"I don't even know why I'm here."

"It surprises me as well," Angel explained.

"I wanted to know," Jen told him. "I don't know why it mattered but it did. I had to know. Now I do, and I don't know what to make of it. Tell me Angel, why did you love me?"

Angel smiled slightly. "I was a horrible person. Always have been. I might not have been a killer back then, but I did cause a lot of trouble. I always had some sort of problem going on, but you were the first person to truly love me. You looked past all that, and saw the real me."

"You caused trouble because you were pressured so much," Jen explained. "But I saw beyond that… or at least I thought I did."

"That time together... When there was no Lily around, I had so much fun with you. I didn't need anything else."

"Then why Angel?"

"I guess it just wasn't meant to be."

Jen just sat there quietly for a moment staring at Angel. Finally she said, "I guess so." She stood from her seat and headed for the door. She paused for a moment not turning to look at him. "Hey Angel?"

"Yeah?"

"It's not gone… I mean yeah… the hate is much bigger, but somewhere… I can feel it… somewhere I do still care."

AN: Reviews Please! Hope you loved lol.


	40. Chapter 40

AN: Okay, the gay thing is I started writing this chapter one day while at work and then my dumb ass decided to lose it, so I had to rewrite the damn thing. Grr. And then to top it off, I couldn't even remember what I wrote. But anyway, I hope you all enjoy this. Please read and review.

Special Thanks to:

**Miximonkee**: Hehe, thanks. Glad you enjoyed that last chapter. Luvs!

**Marauder Heir**: Well I don't know… he's not really a bastard. I actually kinda like Angel lol. He's not really that bad. But then again, that's the only side you've really seen of him. Heh.

**Mercury Angel**: Hehe, glad you enjoyed the last chapter, but I did kind of feel sorry for Jen for falling for Lily's trap.

**Luvs to everyone else who is reading this though I know it's not many of you judging by the view count, but oh well as long as those close to me are reading it.**

Chapter 40

_So now we knew the truth of Angel's feelings… of what had been going through his mind. I still couldn't understand his reasoning, but I guess it didn't matter. After all, we all do things that other people don't understand. It's just life._

xXx

Lily was walking down the street alone after leaving the hospital. She was a little surprised to learn about Angel's real feelings. So he didn't love her. That was a relief. But he did love Jen. Lily stopped walking for a moment and sighed. "He used me to break up his engagement. If I was never around… It was my fault." Shaking her head, Lily decided she wasn't quite ready to return to the Institute. She turned off her path and into the woods, no actual destination in mind, just the need to be free.

After walking some distance into the woods, Lily came across a small lake. She sat a little distance from the river, but close enough where she could still here the sound of the running water. Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to fall into deep meditation, the sound soothing her and helping her to calm herself, all her muscles relaxing.

As the sound of the river slowly vanished from her ears, Lily entered a world that only she herself could enter, one that allowed access to someone very close to her… closer than her own cousin. It was dark until flames lit up all around her, torches that she knew all too well exactly where they were. The ground was cold, almost icy. Lily could feel it through her shoes. How it stayed that way for her friend she wasn't sure, but she never questioned. This was the place she had been sealed. It's where she had come to know as home.

"What brings you here today?" A young girl slightly taller than Lily stepped out of the shadows. Her hair was a fiery mess that flew every which way, coming down to her shoulders. Her eyes matched her hair, but held a certain darkness stating that she was a serious one. She wore a short dark red skirt that looked as if it had been torn to shorten the length, and a matching halter top. She wore no shoes, so Lily couldn't understand the frozen floor, but then again Secada was a fire bird. The cold was nothing to her for she could not feel it through all the heat that coursed through her body.

"I just wanted to see you," Lily said walking up to the girl.

"Something troubles you my friend."

Lily nodded and exited the hall through one of the doors which led her to a small warm room which Secada had created for her. The room was cozy and decorated with the two colors red and black. There was carpet all throughout the small room and a bed in the middle covered by curtains.

She sat on the bed and stared up at Secada. "I haven't come to see you in a while."

"I know."

"We found out Angel's true feelings."

"I've been watching you," Secada simply said.

Lily nodded and stared down at the ground. "Hey Secada?"

"Yes Princess?"

"How did you become a part of me?"

Secada smiled and kneeled down in front of the girl so as to see eye to eye. "You were chosen Lily. There are things that only you are meant to do."

Lily stared at Secada in silence, eyes burning into hers. Secada knew what the girl was thinking, but there was nothing she could say against it. Lily was here to kill someone she cared for. She had to protect the Earth.

Secada looked up as she sensed a presence nearing the girl. She knew who it was and knew that Lily would suddenly be pulled from this world. She looked to Lily and took the girl's hands in her own.

"Lily, whatever happens it's not your fault. And back then… with your cousin and Angel… it's not your fault either. You can't keep blaming…"

"Lily!"

Lily's eyes flew open, the sound of the river returning to her ears. She could see a pair of legs, and her gaze dashed upward to see who was standing in front of her. She glared up at Morion whose eyes held a kind of concern for the girl. She pushed herself up and stepped away from the boy. Morion didn't step towards her or anything, but he wouldn't pull his gaze from her.

"What are you doing out here?" Morion asked the girl.

"It's none of your business," Lily said and turned away from the boy.

"Lily?"

"What Morion?"

"I'm sorry."

Lily blinked and turned to look back at the boy. "What?"

"I said I'm sorry. I know you hate me, and I don't blame you. But I do care Lily, and it hurts when I see that you're in so much pain, whether it's physically or mentally."

"Hurt? Who says I'm hurt?"

"Your eyes do."

"My… what?" Lily shook her head and turned away again. "Leave me alone!" She stormed on her way out of the forest, leaving Morion there alone.

"You should really leave her alone."

Morion spun around to watch as Michelle walked out from behind a tree and up to him. "What do you want Michelle?"

"Nothing really. Michelle was just wandering around and saw you here bothering Princess Lily. You should really give up."

"I can't. I just feel something is going to happen. When I think of her, when I see her, something screams out to me that I should watch out for her. I need to keep an eye on her, Michelle."

"You really do love Lily, don't you?"

Morion looked at Michelle, shocked that he would even ask such a question. "Michelle, I have never cared for anyone before until she came along. Lily means the world to me and hurting her was the worst possible thing I could ever do." Morion pushed past the boy, and headed back towards where their ship was safely hidden.

Michelle watched after his friend, saddened by the fact that Morion was hurting so much. He wished that Lily would just see Morion's feelings for her, but knew that it was impossible. Lily had completely shut herself off from the boy and somehow Michelle couldn't blame her. But somehow he still wanted to know. So instead of heading back to the ship, he ran off in the direction that Lily had gone.

Just as he was nearing the outside of the forest, he spotted Lily. Shouting out to the girl, she stopped and turned to face him. It looked like she had been crying, but Michelle couldn't quite tell. But then again, he knew that Lily was a really good actress and could hide just about anything.

"What do you want Michelle?"

"Please Lily. Michelle needs to know. Do you really hate Morion?"

"Hate him?" Lily laughed and Michelle looked at her like she was crazy. "You think I hate him?" Tears started falling from the girl's eyes as she continued laughing. Slowly that laugh turned into sobs and she was suddenly shouting at the boy. "I wish I hated him. I wish I could just forget about him, but it's not that simple. I mean, I trusted him Michelle, and he betrayed that trust. I thought I knew him, but I was wrong. And yet I can't hate him. Why can't I hate him? I want to know Michelle, why can't I hate him? Can you tell me that? It doesn't make sense. I should hate him. I should want nothing to do with him. Instead all I can do is pretend I hate him, to pretend he doesn't exist to me. He hurt me, Michelle."

Lily fell to her knees, burying her face into her hands, sobs wracking her shoulders. Michelle felt bad now. He hadn't meant to hurt her, and yet he did. Taking a deep breath, Michelle walked over and kneeled down next to the girl.

"I'm sorry Lily. I didn't mean…"

"I know." Lily sniffled a little, wiping her tears. She looked up at the boy and a small yet sad smile appeared on her face. "You just wanted to know. Morion is your best friend. I don't blame you." She stood, Michelle following up after her.

"Lily, you're not mad at Michelle are you?"

"Oh, Michelle, I could never be mad at you." She reached out to the boy, pulling him into her embrace. "Sweet Michelle, thank you."

"For what?"

"You were always there for me… for any of us." She pulled away and finally Michelle could see a real smile grace her lips. Lily turned from Michelle. "I should get back. I'm not really supposed to leave the institute."

"Right. You take care of yourself Lily."

"You too Michelle." Lily then walked out of the forest and blinked when she came across Jen.

"You're still out here?" Jen asked her cousin.

Lily blinked and nodded. "Um… yeah. You headed back already?"

"Well I don't know," Jen said, anger clearly shown in her voice.

"Hm? Jen, what's wrong?" Lily asked.

"Oh I don't know." Jen laughed bitterly. "Maybe that you tricked me… that you knew I was following you."

"I helped you figure out what you wanted to know," Lily said, matching Jen's anger. "You were so curious to know, I just figured I'd help you with getting the information. You asked, I delivered."

"You didn't have to trick me."

"Yeah I did," Lily told her a little more calmly now, "because you wouldn't have had the courage to follow me if I'd asked you to come, and you wouldn't have believed me if I'd just straight up told you Angel's true feelings. You had to hear it from him." Lily sighed. "I'm sorry I tricked you, but it was all I could do. You can be mad at me if you want Jen, but all I wanted was to help you." Lily shook her head and shoved past her cousin, heading back to the institute.

Jen, alone now, looked into the forest where her cousin had just been, only to find Michelle staring at her. Jen looked back to her cousin's retreating back and sighed. "Lily! Wait up!" Jen ran to catch up to her cousin and the two of them walked back together.

AN: Yay, more emotional stuff lol. Hope you enjoyed. Review please. Luvs!


	41. Chapter 41

Special thanks to my friends Miximonkee and Marauder Heir for commenting on the last chapter.

Chapter 41

_Things were getting so complicated lately, but mostly just from emotional stress. I just needed some time away from people, but that was never going to happen. I guess I just had to get over things and move on. Things just were, and I had to accept that._

xXx

"If you think you can handle it," Xavier had told Lily.

Lily nodded to Xavier. "I can Professor. It's just… he has no one here on Earth to take care of him, and so I thought I'd take responsibility over him." She was here to talk about Angel. She may hate the boy, but at the time he was incapable of taking care of himself. Lily didn't want to be the bad guy, and while she thought he deserved this fate, she just couldn't leave him alone like that.

"That's fine Lily, but I want you to make sure no one sees you." He knew she already knew this, but he felt he should remind her anyway.

"Of course Professor."

"I can help with that." Lily jumped, spinning around to see who had entered the room.

"Delotha!" Lily's eyes narrowed at the boy. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I was worried about you. If you're going to be wandering in and out of the institute I wanted to make sure you were alright."

Lily blinked at the boy who seemed to quickly look away from her. A small smile graced her lips, but only for a quick second. She quickly wiped it away before Morion could see it. When he finally looked back at her, she was glaring once again. She could see the hurt in his eyes and feel the pain buried deep in him, but she thought he deserved this.

"You work for Magneto," she told the boy. "I'm your enemy. Why would you want to help me?" She felt the dagger that pierced his heart but didn't allow herself to care. It's what he chose and so it's what he had to live with.

"I didn't know…"

"Didn't know what?" Lily demanded.

"That I would regret it."

The girl's eyes widened and she could feel Xavier smile behind her. Lily fought down a blush and turned away from the boy. "It's up to Professor Xavier," she simply said.

""Why not?" Xavier asked.

"What?" Lily spun to face him, slamming her hands down on his desk. "What do you mean? How could he be helpful? He's the enemy." She now regretted leaving the choice up to Xavier.

"Not yours." Xavier smiled up at the girl. "Lily, I know you're a very capable person, and most the time I trust your judgments, but this time you're letting your feelings get in the way. If you want to continue visiting Angel in the hospital then you will need Morion here to make them think you're someone other than yourself."

"But is his power strong enough for that? That's a lot of people that will be around," Lily complained.

Xavier shook his head at the girl. "Lily, dear child, you know better than that." He watched Lily blink in confusion and he smiled. "Use your powers to help amplify his."

"But…"

"You've grown quite powerful since your training began."

"There's no way I can talk you out of this, is there Professor?"

Xavier shook his head and Lily sighed. She should have known better. She shrugged and turned to Morion, her eyes locking onto him. He seemed to be looking away from her, but she knew he could feel her gaze. She nodded her head and turned back to Xavier. She might not want to do this, but she did agree on one thing.

"You're right Professor. With Morion's help I'll be able to get back and forth with no problem." Lily turned to Morion once again. "Just answer one question."

Morion blinked and finally looked over at the girl. "What?"

"How did you get in here without anyone attacking you?"

Morion grinned. "With the help of Michelle of course. He brought me here through one of his portals."

Lily blinked and sighed. Sure enough, she could feel Michelle's presence close by. She then started laughing. Morion blinked at the girl, unsure of what had just gotten into her. Lily fell back into a chair leaning over in laughter, arms clutched tightly over her stomach. Tears started slowly traveling down the girl's cheeks and Morion figured it was from laughing so hard, but suddenly she jumped up and shoved her way past the boy, out of the room. Morion looked over at Xavier who only turned back to his paperwork he must have been doing before Lily came to interrupt him. Sighing, Morion walked out of the room and over to where Michelle stood alone.

xXx

Micki and Jen were walking down the hall when they suddenly saw Lily run past them, eyes hidden beneath those bangs of hers. The two were certain of one thing though. She was crying. Micki had been able to see the tears while Jen had been able to feel the pain. The pair looked at one another and then ran off to catch up with the crying girl. But as they rounded the corner Lily had gone around, the girl was gone and no where to be found.

"What do you think that was about?" Jen asked her friend and Micki shrugged.

"You're the one who has a connection with her."

Jen nodded and stared off down the hall. "Yeah… but she closed herself off."

Unable to do anything, the two girls decided to head outside to train.

xXx

"Let go!" Lily shouted and shoved away from Michelle. She spun to face him and Morion, and glared at the both of them. "What do you think you're doing?" She looked around and realized she was now in Vaisseau. Her eyes narrowed at Michelle and she grabbed the boy by the collar. "Why did you bring me here? What do you want?"

"Michelle wanted to prove to Morion you were crying, and not just laughing."

Lily threw Michelle back into a wall and turned a deadly gaze towards Morion. "This is your fault. I wish I'd never met you."

"Michelle, please leave the room so I can talk to her alone," Morion asked the boy as polite as possible for him. Michelle nodded and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him. Morion then sighed and turned to Lily, eyes softening as he gazed at her.

"What do you want Delotha?"

"I just want to talk Lily. Every time I try to talk to you, you're always running away from me or you just won't listen."

"Why should I have to? You betrayed me. You work for Magneto… the enemy!" Lily shouted. "How could you work for Magneto? Why Delotha? And then not only that… You then came to my school and killed one of my Professors."

"I know, and I'm sorry, but Magneto is paying me."

"Money? You're doing all this for money?"

"It's the only way to get by in life Lily."

"NO!" Lily shook her head. "Money isn't the way Delotha."

"Well it's not like I ever had anyone before," Morion snapped at the girl. "I grew up alone, in an orphanage. I had no parents and people were usually afraid of me."

Lily blinked, having learned this for the first time ever. "Why are you telling me this?"

"I don't know. I just felt like telling someone, and you are that someone."

Lily sighed and sat down on a chair. Morion came over and kneeled down in front of her, staring right into her eyes. He took her hands into his.

"I know you don't want my help to see Angel… especially after everything that's happened, but I just want to be there to protect you Lily."

"It hurts…" Lily was staring down, away from Morion's gaze.

Morion blinked and tried to meet the girl's eyes again. "What hurts?"

"Being around you."

"What?" Morion's hands slipped from hers and finally she looked into his eyes. "It really hurts?" he asked.

Lily nodded. "I…" She sighed. "I just wish…" She shook her head.

"No… Lily, please tell me." He placed a warm hand on her cheek.

"You've changed Morion," she told him. "Your eyes… they're a lot warmer. And your personality… where did all that anger go?" This of course wasn't what she was going to say before, but just now she noticed the change and she couldn't help the change of topic.

"What?" Morion blinked, confused about what the girl was saying.

Lily smiled. "You're more calm, and not so forceful. You're eyes are so warm, and yet so lonely. I couldn't see it before." She reached out, wrapping her arms around the boy and pulling him into her embrace. "But you're not alone."

"Lily…"

xXx

Jen walked through her door and blinked when she found her cousin sound asleep on her bed, a peaceful look on her face. She wondered if Lily had sorted out whatever was bothering her earlier and smiled as well. She kicked off her shoes and fell back onto her bed. Her and Micki had gone out earlier to train, but they didn't really get much training done since Logan had shown up and Jen decided to give her friend some time with the man. Since then Jen had just been wandering around aimlessly.

She'd been a little lonely lately since her blue boyfriend had gone off on a mission with a few of the other students, Bobby the leader of this mission. She looked over to her cousin and knew that also left Lily a little lonely lately as well.

Jen opened her laptop and blinked when she noticed she had an email from one of her friend that should be on Venus. Quickly opening the email, she noticed it was a distress call from Angela. Her eyes skimmed through the note and her head dropped as she wasn't surprised by the news. She started laughing, not realizing she had just woken her cousin up. She heard some shuffling over on the bed and quickly shut up. She turned over to see her cousin sitting up, staring at her. Jen smiled and motioned for Lily to come over.

Lily glared at her cousin at first for waking her up, but then she swung her legs over the bed and jumped off, slowly making her way over to her cousin. She rubbed her eyes and took a seat next to Jen. Jen smiled at her cousin and turned her laptop for Lily to see.

"Read. It's from Angy. I'm sure you got one too, but yeah…"

Lily blinked and stared at the screen. It took her a moment before she was able to focus on the words, but then she gasped as she read on. Angy's sister, Kali, had made her way to Earth, and Angy was now in the process of trying to find her. Lily shook her head, knowing full well this wasn't good news. Kali had two powers… one was putting people to sleep… the other was melting stuff. Kali loved destruction. Lily had no doubts the girl would be causing problems. Groaning, she leaned back in her chair.

"Figures. It was only a matter of time."

AN: Review Please?


	42. Chapter 42

AN: Here it is, chapter 42... Finally. Sorry it took so long for me to update. Not too much action in this one… so I hope you still enjoy it. Thanks for waiting so patiently.

Special Thanks to:

**Miximonkee**: Actually at first I wasn't going to put Angy and Kali in it at all. But then I decided I need some new characters, lol. Yeah right.

**Marauder Heir**: lol, the Earth is doomed, huh? What with Kali prancing around, lol.

**Mercury Angel**: Hehe, thanks for the reviews. And yeah, Jen would totally get mad at Lily for tricking her, and that's why I just had to do it. Smiles. Anyway, hopefully you enjoy this chapter too.

**Don't forget to review people!!!! Please!!!!! It might make me update sooner if ya know what I mean. Luv to all!!!!!**

Chapter 42

_Great! So me and Morion are talking again. Well, I guess it's a good thing since later that day as if to challenge me, Professor Xavier had told me it was now a mission to work with Morion. Xavier told me it was also a good way to keep an eye on the boy. So what? Was I his babysitter now? Oh well for me I guess. I mean, I did tell Morion that he wasn't alone anymore._

xXx

Micki was walking down the hall and towards the kitchen when she was caught by two of her friends, Lily and Jen. The two girls had called out to her, causing the girl to turn from the kitchen and down the hall from where she'd just been. "Can I help the two of you?" she asked.

"Angy is on Earth," Lily explained to the elf.

Micki blinked, unable to process this for a moment. Angela wasn't one to just travel to Earth for no reason. She was a very responsible person and took her duties as Princess of Venus very seriously. So why would she… unless.

"Kalina is on Earth?" Micki quickly blurted out and the two cousins nodded. Micki groaned, starting to massage her temples. With everything going on the last thing they needed was a destructive Kalina on Earth.

"We know where Angy is," Jen explained.

"Well, let's go get her," Micki ordered.

"But we need someone who can fly the jet," Lily said. "Scott's dead. Professor Grey is in no condition to do anything. Logan just left on a mission and Storm has classes to teach."

"I can fly," Micki stated. The two cousins stared at the girl wide eyed, confusion mixing with surprise.

"But how? Why? When?" Lily managed to get out.

"Logan taught me. I don't know why, but it was fun. And it started on our way back from our first mission together," Micki quickly explained. "So can we go now?"

Lily nodded and looked to her cousin. "To France it is then."

xXx

"They went to France without me?" Tal whined to Sakura. The black hair girl only nodded and continued what she was doing which was playing a fighting game on the TV against Lance. She was almost ready to finish him off when Tal suddenly grabbed the girl, distracting her and allowing Lance to get the kill. Sakura glared up at Tal.

"Yes, they went to France without you. They're on a mission to retrieve Angy."

"Angy's here?"

"Yes Angy's here. Now will you let me get back to my game?"

"Why didn't anyone tell me this?" Tal complained.

"I just did." Sakura then waved the girl off and returned to her game. She glared at her boyfriend for a moment but then grinned as she suddenly took the kill. She laughed at the shocked expression on Lance's face. "Haha! I beat ya! What ya gonna do now, huh?"

"You wanna know what I'm gonna do?" Lance asked grinning at the girl. "How about this?" He leaned over and started tickling his girlfriend. She went into a fit of giggles as she tried to fight him off.

"Get offa me ya loser!" she called out and finally escaped him. She got up and ran out of the room and out the front door, Lance close behind her.

Tal sat alone in the room now just staring at the front door. "What's wrong Tal?" She looked up at her boyfriend and smiled. Jumping up, she glomped the boy.

"You're back!" she said clinging to the boy. Gambit only laughed.

"I'm back." He looked around. "Where is everyone else?"

Tal pulled away from the boy and began pouting. "Lily, Jen and Micki went to France to retrieve one of our friends, and nobody told me."

"Somebody had to have told you for you to know," Gambit stated and laughed when Tal was suddenly glaring at him.

"Sakura just told me, but that's only because I asked."

"Gambit is sorry, Love." He patted the girl on the head and pulled her into another hug.

xXx

The jet landed safely on the ground, and Lily and Jen rushed out of the aircraft while Micki took her time turning everything off. When she was finished, she also made her way off the jet. She found Lily clinging to one very familiar girl while Jen was just to the side laughing.

When Lily finally pulled away from the girl, Micki could tell Angy hadn't changed one bit. She still looked exactly like her mother with her long blond hair half pulled back into a ribbon and bright blue eyes. She was the spitting image of Minako. Micki nodded to the girl. They obviously hadn't had to go far to find her. It seemed like Angy had already been waiting for them. Micki almost laughed. It was typical of the girl, what with her extreme sense of respect and responsibility. Angy might have looked exactly like her mother, but she was nothing like Minako.

"So how did Kalina get to Earth?" Micki asked the girl. "I thought you wouldn't let her come? And isn't she forbidden to have a portal key?"

Angela sighed. "I was keeping her from coming, but I can't watch that girl twenty-four seven. I went to a meeting and she took the opportunity to steal a portal key from my mother and sneak to Earth."

"Sounds like Kali," Jen chimed in. Lily only nodded.

"Anyway, we should really get back," Micki explained. "I'm sure they'll want the jet back as soon as possible and plus we're not really supposed to have it without adult supervision, so let's go."

Lily nodded and made her way onto the jet, followed closely by everyone else.

xXx

"It's nice to meet you Angela," Xavier said as he took the girl's hand in his own. "I hope you enjoy your stay here and please let me know if there's anything I can do to aid in the search for your sister."

Angy smiled at the man. "Thank you Professor Xavier. You are very kind." Angy wasn't used to such a kind man. Most people she dealt with she found incompetent and annoying, but she always smiled for them anyway. For this man she found she was really smiling. No wonder her friends felt so at home here. But then as she looked around at the other students she noticed it really wasn't home for her friends. Everyone seemed to avoid her friends and even herself.

"What is wrong with the people here?" Angy asked.

Lily blinked at the girl and then smiled. "Oh them? Don't worry about them. They've been like that ever since they learned that we were aliens."

"They… what?" Angy's eyes were wide. "How did they find that out?"

"Michelle let it slip," Lily explained.

"Michelle is here on Earth as well? Isn't he just a disaster waiting to happen?"

"Hey, Michelle's not that bad!" Jen defended him, but she knew it was useless. Angy didn't like Michelle much only because he didn't have an ounce of responsibility in him. He took nothing seriously and he was just a little too odd for her. He was like a little child that would never learn to grow up. Angy's sense of responsibility sometimes scared Jen.

"Anyway," Lily cut in. "Angy, this will be your room." Lily handed the girl a key and quickly made her way down the hall.

Angy blinked after the girl and turned to Jen. "Where is she headed in such a hurry?"

"To our boyfriends. They came back today from their mission." Jen smiled. "Professor Xavier gave us that message earlier as we were leaving his office. Sorry Angy, but I just gotta see Kurt." Jen then ran off as well towards the direction her cousin had gone in.

Angy was happy to know that her friends were able to find people they could be happy with. She was a little surprised though to learn that Lily had a boyfriend. After Duo, Angy wasn't sure the girl would ever be able to move on. Apparently she was wrong.

xXx

A couple days passed as Angy got to know the Institute a little better. It was a good school, but she didn't like the attitudes of most the students staying here. They were usually cold towards her, and she couldn't understand why. She had never done anything to them, but her friends seemed able to get past it somehow. It bothered her that they could accept the way they were being treated so easily. No one deserved this. Had it always been this way for them? Angy wanted to ask, but she wasn't one for prying.

One thing Angy had noticed though was how much her friends had improved in their skills… expanded even. She'd never imagined anything beyond what they'd already known to do. Not that she really cared. She really enjoyed her ability. She didn't need more than she already had. It was handy enough. But that was Angy for you. She had wanted to spend more time with her friends but Lily tended to keep to herself which Jen explained that she did have her reasons. And Jen liked to spend her time with either Kurt or Micki. Angy sighed. She would have bothered Kat only she knew better. Kat loved being left alone more than anything, although Angy was shocked at the knowledge of Kat's boyfriend Pietro. So much had changed since her friends had left. They'd each had their own lives as well.

xXx

Micki was sitting in her usual spot today. She would have spent time with her friends only she felt a little lonely since Logan had gone on some sort of mission for the past couple days. She never realized how much she could miss the man, but now that he wasn't around she knew. She sighed, unable to meditate for once. She leaned back and stared up at the sky. It was clear and very sunny today. She enjoyed the warmth from the sun. She was about to get up and leave when a familiar voice caught her attention.

"I just get home and you're already going to just leave me?"

Micki blinked and turned in the direction of the voice. She smiled when her gaze met Logan's. "You're back early," she simply told him.

"What can I say? Couldn't wait to see you." He stood, leaning back against a tree. He stared up at the sky and smiled. "Want to go for a walk?"

"Sure." Micki started to stand from her spot on the ground when she found a hand offered to her. She blinked up at Logan and smiled taking it. She felt herself pulled up and as soon as she was standing did she start dusting her dress off. She was very happy that Logan was back, and although she probably would never admit it, she was starting to have very strong feelings for him. Though she sensed that Logan already knew of her feelings anyway. It was enough for her to just be with him.

AN: Yeah, not one of my best chapters, but I figured it's been too long since I've updated, so I hope you enjoyed. Review please.


	43. Chapter 43

AN: Hehe, it actually didn't take that long for me to get this chapter up. I usually take much longer than this, lol. Anyway, I can't believe I'm already in the forties. I mean… I thought this story would come to a close much sooner but it looks like there's still a lot more to happen. Sighs. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter… you all not being that many people. Sobs. Not enough people read this anymore. The numbers have really diminished. Oh well I guess. That's what my other fics are for. Smiles. Bai bai all!

Special Thanks to:

**Marauder Heir**: No… I don't get the idea…. What does all your updates mean? Could it possibly mean that maybe… just maybe… you want me to update? Oh… okay… Well here's your update… BAKA!!!!!!!!

**Miximonkee**: Yay! Glad you liked that last part, lol. That was so for you!!!!! Anyway, tis late and I wanna go to bed cuz I work early tomorrow…. Sighs.

**Mercury Angel**: Aw, I'm so sorry you had such a crappy day. Pats on head. It'll be alright. And I'm glad you liked the Micki and Logan part lol. That was my favorite part of the last chapter. I really love their relationship. Tis soooooo subtle, lol.

**Luv to ALL!!!!**

Chapter 43

_It was nice having Angy around though I could sense she had many questions. I didn't hang around her too much, what with being busy between Angel and actually including my boyfriend in my life. I also knew the others really didn't hang with her too much either. I kind of felt bad, but we'd each developed our own lives before she'd come around and honestly it had come as a shock to us that Angy was around. We all love her, we really do, and we don't blame her for Kali's arrival on Earth. I guess we just have to find some time to include her in our lives._

xXx

Lily sat in a secluded room, eyes shut as she'd fallen into a deep meditation. Angy sat in a corner watching the girl, her eyes not coming off her once. Since she'd arrived Lily had been busy with other stuff like class and someone else Lily mentioned that she was currently taking care of. Angy had asked who, but Lily had shrugged it off and explained she was also watching over the one who'd trained her. Lily had explained about the death of Scott and how that changed Jean into what she is now.

Lily was actually very cautious of Jean. Angy noticed this during her stay and wondered why. She had been told it had to do with some sort of other power, but Angy didn't understand. She was getting tired of not being filled in with all the details of everything, but what was she going to do about it? She wasn't a mind reader like Lily was.

Angy's gaze snapped to where Lily was when she noticed the girl move. Lily's eyes slowly opened as she glanced over to where Angy was. She sighed and stood from her spot on the floor. Angy rose as well, eyes eager for whatever information Lily had gathered.

"I'm sorry to say I have nothing for you," Lily told the girl.

"Well, can't you meditate some more?"

"I'm sorry, but I have to go meet up with someone," Lily explained and grabbed a bag from off the floor. She dashed out the door, not giving Angy a chance to ask who. Angy felt this was more important, but then again she didn't know what Lily was up to. She kept to herself too much, causing Angy's curiousness to grow more and more with each passing day.

Angy walked out of the room and towards her own when she ran into Jen. She blinked and smiled at the girl, noticing she had no one with her. "Jen, you're usually with Micki or Kurt."

Jen smiled. "Actually I came looking for Lily."

"Oh, she just left. She said she had to meet up with someone," Angy explained and Jen gave her a curious look.

"Leave? But she should still be around. We're not really allowed off the Institute property."

Angy blinked. "But she was headed towards the front door."

That's when Jen ran past Angy quickly and towards the front of the Institute. She ran out the front door and stared towards the gate where she saw her cousin heading. "Lily!" She called out. Her cousin stopped and turned to face her.

"What's up Jen?"

"Where are you headed?" Jen asked. "We're not allowed the leave the Institute and you're doing it again."

Lily blinked. "I just need to get out," she explained.

"You're lying," Jen accused.

Lily sighed. "It's not important okay. I got a mission from the Professor so I have to go."

"What kind of mission? Lily, what are you hiding from me?"

Lily turned to the gate and then back to her cousin. "Okay, it's like this. I'm taking care of Angel."

"What?" Jen shouted. "You wouldn't even go visit him before I'd asked you to. You hate Angel."

"That may be so," Lily started, "but no one deserves to be left alone no matter what and right now Angel needs someone by him. He can't do anything for himself Jen. The lower half of his body no longer works. I can't just leave him like that."

Jen was having a hard time believing what she was hearing. Sure, her cousin had a heart, but whenever it had come to Angel Lily bred pure hatred for the boy. Jen had never seen Lily hate anyone so much before, and yet here her cousin was forgiving the one person who had caused her more pain then anyone could ever cause the girl.

"I haven't forgiven him," Lily told the girl, probably having had read the blue haired girl's mind. "I just can't leave him. Besides, I see it." Lily smiled at the curious expression on her cousin's face. "You still care for him Jen. He's reverted back to the sweet Angel we first knew and it's bringing you back."

"You know, sometimes I hate that we're connected, cause I know you didn't read that from my mind," Jen said.

Lily laughed. "So true. I felt it… in your heart."

"Wait," Jen interrupted. "So if you're taking care of Angel how are you getting back and forth without getting caught?"

Lily sighed. "And yet another question I was hoping never to have to answer." Lily took a deep breath. "Morion is helping me."

"Mor… Delotha?" Jen practically shouted. "How can you accept help from him?"

"Well, that's the thing… I wasn't going to and the Professor made me. That's the part that is my mission. It works though because Morion can make people see someone other than myself."

"This is the boy that's working for Magneto," Jen explained. "Our enemy."

"Apparently not mine," Lily told her. "Look, all I know is Morion actually regrets working for Magneto."

"I won't ever forgive him," Jen quickly explained and blinked when her cousin only smiled.

"I know." Lily hugged the blue haired girl. "Thanks." She pulled away and ran out the gate. Jen watched as Morion walked up to the girl and quickly Lily's appearance changed to one that definitely wasn't her cousin.

"I guess it works," Jen told herself and headed back into the Institute.

xXx

Micki was out in her usual spot again today, this time reading a book she had borrowed from the library. She looked up when a pair of legs appeared in front of her. She was staring up at Angy. "Can I help you?"

Angy kneeled down in front of the girl. "I'm tired of not knowing anything. I want you to explain everything to me."

Micki nodded and watched as the girl sat down in front of her. "Where would you like me to start?"

"From the beginning," Angy answered.

"I'll start then from when I arrived. When I first arrived I was looking for Lily and everyone else from our home planets, but most of them were away on a mission."

"Why did you come to Earth?" Angy asked. "I know the others wanted to escape, but you didn't really have a reason."

"I was sent by the Royal Council to tell them about the war on the planets and that we were to remain here on Earth and fight off the ones who had escaped to here. We are on a mission to protect Earth. Many things have happened since I came here, and everyone's developed more. Lily has even opened up."

"Could have fooled me," Angy said, looking away from Micki, anger apparent in her voice.

"You don't know," Micki said calmly trying to keep herself from shouting. "Lily's gone from one boyfriend to another."

"Two? And already?" Angy mocked. "Boy, she's really moved on, huh?"

"Exactly." Micki was now glaring at the girl. "Look, I know you're upset that Lily's getting nowhere with finding your sister, but she is trying. Lily has moved on. When the first guy hurt her, she moved on and was able to date again. It took her years before she even considered dating after Duo. The fact that Lily was even able to date the first guy was proof that she's moved on. So what if she went from one the other. She had her reasons."

Angy just stared at the elf, unsure of what to say. It wasn't often that Micki would get mad, though come to think of it, it wasn't often that she herself would get so frustrated. She usually didn't get so angry, and now she was taking it all out on her friends. She was feeling lonely and left out. She didn't know anything that was going on, like as if she wasn't supposed to be there.

"So what happened? Did you find anyone from the other planets?"

"Quite a few actually," Micki answered, her anger slowly dissipating. "We killed some of them already."

"Who'd you find?"

"Angel…"

"Wait!" Angy interrupted. "You found Angel? As in Angel, Kat's cousin Angel?"

"Yes, as in that Angel," Micki answered rolling her eyes, clearly annoyed by the interruption.

"How did they take it?"

"They're fine. Angel is actually one who survived. He's currently in the hospital. He's immobilized. Jen and Lily have both visited him." Micki was entertained by the shocked expression on Angy's face, but she didn't show it. "We also found Diamond, Livia, and Keith."

"That's it?" Angy asked disappointed. She had expected them to find more with as long as they had been on Earth.

"Earth is big Angela, and there are a lot of people. It takes time. We didn't even find them on purpose. They found us."

Angy sighed and stood from her seat. "You killed the other three, but Angel is still alive? I would have expected Lily to kill him."

"She almost did," Micki said, also standing. She stood and saw Logan walking towards her. Micki shoved past Angy, tired of the girl's attitude towards everything and headed towards the man. Angy blinked as she watched her friend walk away. She'd wondered who the man was and what his relationship with Micki was. She shrugged it off knowing she wasn't going to get anymore answers today.

xXx

"Hello Angel," Lily said as she walked into the cold hospital room. Morion walked in right behind her. "You look better." She smiled as she sat down in a chair next to the boy.

Angel shrugged as he drank some juice a nurse had given him not too long ago. "I guess. I'm tired of this place."

"About that…" Lily sighed. "Um… they said they might let you out soon… I was wondering… Do you want to come stay at Xavier's Institute for Gifted Students with me? I'd take full responsibility for you."

"Why would you do that?" Angel asked the girl, setting his cup down. "After everything that I've done to you."

Lily stared at the boy for a moment and shrugged. "I'm not cold hearted like you are."

"I'm not…"

"Were."

"I see." Angel stared down at his hands, a little afraid to look at Lily, ashamed of all the things he'd done to the girl. He had hurt her, killed her love and now she was willing to take care of him. She really was a peculiar one. "Thank you."

Lily stood and placed a hand on the boy's head. "Don't worry about it." She walked over to the curtains and stared outside. It was really bright today. "Well, since you seem to be doing okay today I think I'm going to head back."

"Sure." Angel smiled at the girl and watched as she walked out of the room. His smile faded when Morion stopped at the doorway and turned to face him.

"You wonder too huh?"

"What?" Angel was confused by the boy's comment.

"We hurt her… betrayed her… and yet she still shows such compassion for us."

"I guess it's just her nature."

Morion nodded and walked out, catching up to Lily. The dark haired girl blinked up at him, curiosity written all over her face. Morion almost laughed but instead just led the girl out of the hospital and home.

AN: Well? What did you think? Review please!!!!!!!!!!!


	44. Chapter 44

AN: Oooo, Chapter 44 is FINALLY here. Yay! I know I haven't worked on this in a while and I'm really sorry. I've had like serious writer's block on it, so yeah… been workin' on my other fics instead. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter…. Personally it's not as good as I'd like it to be…. Sorry.

**Special Thanks to Miximonkee and Marauder Heir for the comments. Luvs!!!**

Chapter 44

_Well, a lot has been going on lately, but it's been going a little easier lately. Things at the institute had calmed a bit, though we were still very hated. Guess we'll never get over that, huh? I've been hanging a bit more with Morion… the problem is how to break that to my boyfriend. And well, Angy is still irritated at me for not being helpful enough, but what else am I supposed to do?_

xXx

Jen was watching her cousin gather some stuff and throw them into a bag. Lily wasn't a very happy person at the moment and Jen knew why. The violet eyed girl had just returned from meditation for Angy, and yet again failed to locate the infamous Kali. Jen knew it wasn't Lily's fault, but Angy had been getting so irritated by Lily's failure that she'd just snapped at the violet eyed girl today. Lily and Angy had quite a spat before Lily had returned to her room, closing herself away from the blonde. An angry Lily was never a good thing and Jen knew the girl had to go meet up with Morion soon to retrieve Angel.

Sighing, Jen stood from her spot on the bed and blinked when Lily stormed out, slamming the door behind her. Shaking her head, Jen walked out as well. She wasn't sure what she wanted to do, but anything to keep her mind occupied was good. Her cousin's anger was seeping so much it was starting to affect Jen. Grinning, she decided to go find a certain blue character. Jen then ran down the hall and towards Kurt's room, hoping he was there.

She stopped at her boyfriend's door and started to knock when Colossus walked up. "Hey Jen, what's up?

Jen blinked at the boy and smiled. "Just came to see if Kurt was here. Kinda bored and thought me and him could hang out a bit."

"Oh… That's right. He didn't wanna wake you up, but he left really early this morning on a mission."

"Oh… I see…" This didn't make Jen's day any better. She smiled and nodded. "Thanks." Brushing past Colossus, she made her way down the stairs and to the TV room. Taking a seat, she began to flip through the channels not realizing at first the looks she was getting from the other students. When she didn't finally notice, she couldn't help but feel the best thing to do was just leave. And so she did. She rose from her seat and made her way outside.

Outside was a bit cool, but it didn't bother Jen. She smiled, enjoying the feel of the nice cool fresh air. She looked around, wondering if Micki was anywhere to be seen. But with her luck, the elf was probably with a certain man. Sighing, she made her way to a bench and just sat down.

"You alone today?"

Jen blinked and stared up at Gambit. "Hey, what's up? You're not with Tal?"

Gambit shook his head and took a seat next to Jen. "Nope. She went on that mission this morning. Left Gambit all alone."

Jen laughed. "I know how you feel."

"So what's up with you? You look so lonely…"

Jen sighed. "My cousin was so angry today, so much that it started leaking out towards me. Tried to get my mind off it, but then I found out that Kurt was gone." She stared up at the sky. "Today Lily is bringing Angel here. I just… I still don't understand it."

"I see." Gambit smiled. "Your cousin… she has a very kind heart, no?"

Jen laughed. "Yeah. I guess… I would have done the same thing given the chance." Jen thought for a moment. "But then again… maybe not… I guess I'll never know." Jen smiled. "I'm going to go train for a bit." She stood from her seat. "It was nice talking to you." Jen waved to the boy and made her way into the woods. She found her spot and sighed as she started practicing.

xXx

Lily stared down at Angel who was now in a wheelchair. Morion stood beside her, also staring down at the boy. He wasn't sure about this. Sure the boy was immobile but….

"Lily, are you sure about this?"

Lily nodded. "Everybody deserves a second chance, right? And this is his."

"But…" He blinked when Lily was suddenly glaring at him.

"I'm giving you a second chance, right?"

Morion sighed and nodded. He should really keep his mouth shut sometimes. He followed as Lily pushed Angel to the elevator. The girl wasn't in a good mood today and he was really beginning to wonder why. She hadn't said much to him today, and when she met up with him earlier she just kind of brushed by with this extremely scary look on her face. Morion thought that she would burst into flames if she didn't calm down anytime soon.

"Lily…"

"What?" she snapped at him.

"Never mind."

Making their way off the elevator, they started their trek back to the Institute. Lily didn't say a word the whole way, probably not wanting to say anything she didn't mean. She was angry at how she was considered useless when she's been trying everyday since Angy arrived to locate Kali. Lily didn't know what more she could do. She glared at the crowd ahead of her and almost smirked when most everyone seemed to just move out of her way. _That's right people. Fear me!!!_

Angel's eyes were wide with fear at the girl who was currently controlling his wheelchair. For all he knew she could just push him out into the street right in front of a car. She looked angry enough to do so. Shaking his head, he tried to tell himself that Lily wouldn't do such a thing… Or at least he prayed she wouldn't.

_Useless huh? I'll show her! Just wait until I find your sister Angy and then you'll have to apologize to me! You can't just come strutting here onto Earth, demanding our help and then telling us we're not doing enough. _Lily's mind was so full of angry thoughts that she'd almost passed the institute. Blinking, she growled and made her way through the gate, not even saying bye to Morion who she knew couldn't enter the Institute.

Lily grinned at the looks she got from everyone, each one of them wondering what Angel was doing here. She enjoyed their confusion. Pushing the boy into the Institute, she made her way up to Xavier's office. There she found the man sitting at his desk, waiting patiently for her.

"Lily, I see you've returned."

"Hm… yeah."

Xavier blinked at the girl's reaction. "What's wrong? Is something bothering you?"

Lily sighed. "No."

Xavier nodded, not wanting to really push the girl at the moment. He had other matters at hand. He turned his gaze to Angel and smiled. "Angel, welcome to my Institute for Gifted Young Students. I hope you enjoy your stay here."

"Thank you Professor," Angel said. "I really appreciate you letting me stay here."

Xavier nodded. "It is my opinion that everyone deserve a chance." He looked up at Lily. "Would you mind taking Angel to his new room?"

Lily nodded and pushed the boy out of Xavier's office and to the elevator. She fell back against the wall and sighed. Her anger was beginning to wear off by now. Being angry sure was tiresome. After this Lily decided that she would go take a nap. She was supposed to meet up with Bobby later, but she was sure that he'd understand.

Exiting the elevator, Lily made her way down the hall and to Angel's room. "You get Morion's old room." Lily handed him the key and began to walk away.

"Lily!"

Lily stopped to face the boy, hand on her hip as she tapped her foot on the ground. "What?"

"Thank you."

Blinking, Lily nodded at the boy. "Yeah… sure." She then made her way up the stairs to her floor.

xXx

Jen blinked after training. A familiar feeling filled her and she sighed. "Lily's back." Gathering her stuff, Jen decided to go check on her cousin. By now she could tell Lily wasn't as angry as before, but still a little frustrated. Jen took a sip of water and then made her way back to the Institute.

When Jen had returned to their room though, she found that her cousin had already made herself comfortable in bed. Sighing, Jen sat down on her own bed. It had been a long day of mostly anger and Jen could understand her cousin's need for sleep.

Shaking her head, Jen decided against it. A shower would be good at the moment. After all the training Jen couldn't stand the way she felt. Laughing a bit, she grabbed some clothes and a towel and made her way to the shower room.

Today Jen wasn't the only one in the shower room. There were quite a few girls in here, much to Jen's dismay. She sighed and made her way into one of the shower stalls, now deciding on a quick shower. After a quick rinse, she threw her clothes on and quickly made her way back to the room where Rogue was sitting on her bed flipping through a magazine.

"Rogue, where ya been?"

Rogue smiled up at the girl. "Went out with Logan today."

Jen blinked. If Rogue had been with Logan then where had Micki been? She cursed herself then for deciding to not look for her friend ealier. It could have saved her a whole heck of a lot of boredom and from the need to train alone. Sighing, Jen fell back on her bed.

"Hey, you look tired."

Jen nodded. "Exhausted. I think I'm gonna turn in for the night."

Rogue nodded and made her way over to the desk where they had a small lamp. Jen turned off the main light and curled up under her blanket. It didn't take long before she finally fell asleep.

**AN: Review please**


	45. Chapter 45

AN: Sorry everyone who's been waiting for me to update. I know it's been a while. I've been caught up in my other fics, not to mention how busy I've been lately. Plus I had like severe writer's block for this story. O.o I'm so sorry. I really hope you enjoy this next chapter.

Chapter 45

_Yesterday obviously hadn't been a good day. I guess I got over it though. It's just so frustrating when you try so hard and yet you're told you're not doing a good enough job. I mean… I'm not really useless am I? Is all this work just a huge waste of my time? I'll find the girl… won't I? I found my other friends, didn't I? I don't understand anymore._

xXx

Micki was sitting in her room today, listening to the rain pound against her window. It was a very gloomy day, and the elf hoped it would end soon. She propped herself on her bed, in a meditative state. Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to relax, following deep into meditation. The rain was soothing as she listened to it, clearing her mind of all thoughts.

The elf wasn't sure how long she had been like that. Nothing could pull her from it until she heard a loud knock on her door. Eyes flying wide open, she let out a deep sigh and forced herself up. Opening the door, she stared up at a certain man. She couldn't help but smile.

"Logan… haven't you anything better to do than tear a girl from her meditation?"

Logan only shrugged as he stared down at her. "We have a mission."

Micki blinked at the man and nodded. "I see. What kind of mission?"

"There are a group of mutants causing trouble. Xavier would like for us to go and dispose of them."

"Just us two? And why me?"

The man grinned. "Okay. It was originally for just me, but I thought you might want to tag along as well."

Micki blinked and a small smile crossed her lips. "I see." She nodded. "When do we leave?"

"As soon as you're ready."

Again the elf nodded. "I'll be down in a few minutes then."

Logan nodded and left the girl. Micki shut her door and quickly got ready, not really needing to do much. A quick change of clothes, and a touch up on her hair, pulling it back in a ponytail, was really all that she needed. Afterwards, she rushed downstairs to go meet up with Logan. There was this feeling inside her, and she couldn't help but be happy that he had wanted her to come along as well.

Logan waited for Micki and smiled when he finally saw the girl come into view. He climbed onto the jet, Micki following right after. They both took their seats in the front, and Logan turned on the jet, taking off. Micki sat back in her seat, watching the man from the corner of her eye. She smirked and closed her eyes.

"So why me?" she asked. "There were so many others you could have asked to come along."

The man shrugged. "Guess I just like your company is all."

Micki opened her eyes and blinked at the man. "You like…" She smirked. "Well, that's nice to know."

Logan laughed. "Hey, you can't say you don't enjoy the time we spend together." Micki only shrugged and closed her eyes again. Logan blinked at this action. "Micki? Right? Micki? Hey!" She could hear him growl and fought the urge to laugh. She shrugged once again. "Micki, I swear…"

"You swear what Logan?" She opened on eye to peek at him and the man only growled yet again. She smirked and closed that one eye, relaxing into her seat. "That's what I thought."

xXx

Jen had been wandering the institute, bored out of her mind. Shaking her head, she headed out to her training spot. She'd been doing a lot of that lately. The others had been busy with their own lives, leaving not much time for her. It didn't bother her. She understood completely, but that would drive anyone crazy. She felt so alone most the time. She wasn't sure what to do anymore, and with this rule to not leave the institute, it's not like she had much she could do.

She shook her head, thinking of how everyone else was doing. Lily had been out a lot to see Morion, but she wondered how that would go now that she didn't need him anymore. Since Lily had brought Angel to the Institute she had been busy with taking care of him. It angered the blue haired girl that her cousin could dedicate so much of her time to someone she hated so much. Jen started to wonder if her cousin really hated Angel or not. Unfortunately her boyfriend, Kurt, was still away on that mission. Then there was Micki. She knew the elf wanted to spend more time with Logan. She saw what was going on between the two of them, and she knew that Micki was too stubborn to admit to any of it. It actually amused the blue haired girl. Tal of course wasn't one of Jen's closest friends, so she didn't really try to spend much time with her unless need be. Sakura… well the girl was always trying to cause trouble and Jen wasn't in the mood for that much as of late. Then there was Kat. The girl was just too depressing for her. Jen wasn't sure she could spend a day with her.

Jen shook her head and tried to think of who else might be able to spend time with her. Going through a list in her head she found a few more occupied people. Rogue was always with Colossus. They were inseparable. Bobby was always trying to help Lily since he could never really get any time alone with her. And if he wasn't doing that he was studying. Angy was too obnoxious for her to try and hang out with. As much as Jen loved the girl, she wasn't sure she could handle her today. And so she ran out of people that she could bother.

Reaching her destination, Jen picked up a stick. Holding it out like a sword, she started beating on a tree. Frustration burned inside her as she thought of Angel being in the same Institute of her. It also frustrated her that Morion was slowly coming into her cousin's life again. Jen smacked the tree with the stick over and over till eventually it snapped and a piece flew up in the air, just missing her as it flew back down.

Pouting, the girl fell to the ground and laid back, staring up towards the sky that was mostly blocked by the trees. Closing her eyes, she tried to see if she could sense her cousin. Immediately Lily's energy flowed towards her. It was calm today, but tired. It seemed the girl had no room for worry or stress today. Jen sighed and sat back up, opening her eyes. She had a feeling that the other students were bothering her cousin yet again.

xXx

Kat was wandering the halls of the institute when she'd come across Mara. She didn't often see the girl around, and didn't really care for her. To her, the girl was odd and needed some mental help. Kat rose an eyebrow as she stared down at the girl. Mara only blinked and grinned.

"You're Kat, right? Mara doesn't usually see you outside of class."

Kat just rolled her eyes at the girl. "Get out of my way." She shoved past Mara who seemed to pout. Kat didn't care. Mara meant nothing to her. Making her way down the hall yet again, she came across the kitchen where she found Pietro eating pizza. Kat smirked and made her way over to him.

"I was wondering where you were. You haven't come by today."

Pietro blinked up at the girl and smirked. "I had a mission earlier today. Just got back and man was I starved." He held out a slice of pizza for her. "Want some?"

Kat shook her head and took a seat next to him. "Nah. Not really hungry." The boy only shrugged and continued eating. "How was your mission?"

"Pretty good. It was really easy." He laughed. "I'm glad though, cause I didn't wanna be away from you for too long."

Kat couldn't help but smile. "That's sweet. You make me sick."

The boy laughed again. "You're so nice." She only shrugged.

"I'm going back up to my room. Come up when you're done."

"Yes ma'am," he called out and winked. She laughed and got up from her seat, disappearing from the kitchen.

**AN: I know it was short, but hopefully the next chapter is longer. I'll try to update soon. At least now I know what I want to write, lol. Please review.**


	46. Chapter 46

**AN: I'm so sorry for how long it took me to get this chapter up. Please please PLEASE forgive me. Anyway, here it is, your long awaited Chapter 46. I really hope you all enjoy it. It had been so long since I'd written the last chapter that I'd completely forgotten what I'd had planned for it, so I had to think up something new, and I must say, I'm quite happy with it. Please let me know what you think.**

**And special thanks to both Marauder Heir and Mercury Angel. Love ya both.**

Chapter 46

_Things were starting to feel really cramped in my life. Thoughts swarmed my head, and many other things forced their way in as well. The professor knew what was going on, but there wasn't really much that he could do to help. I just had to find a way to endure everything that was going on. I needed to be strong, but could I be?_

xXx

Lily walked down the hall trying to shut out the other students' angry cries in her head. For a while the attacks had died down, but suddenly they'd picked up, even worse than when they'd first started. Lily never told her cousin that she was being attacked again. She didn't think the blue haired girl really needed to know. No need to worry anyone.

"Lily! Lily!" she heard the all too hyper Mara call out. Let out a frustrated sigh, she turned to face the girl. "Let's hang out! Come on! We can go walk around together."

"No thanks Mara," Lily said in a very tired and frustrated tone. "Not today. I think I'm just going to go lay down for awhile." She turned away and continued her trek down the hall. Mara only watched the girl, worry shown all too well on the girl's face.

Mara sighed and headed towards her own room. Lately she hadn't seen much of her friends. Things around the Institute had been getting worse since everyone had found out they were holding aliens here. Mara kicked out at the air and tucked her hands in her pockets. She readjusted her glasses and ducked into her room. All she could think was how stupid people and mutants were. What was so different about everyone? Falling back onto her bed she stared up at the ceiling. She fit in here. People cared for her here, but she hated the way people treated others differently just because they didn't understand.

There was a knock on the door, and slowly it opened. John peered into the room. "Mara? What's wrong?"

Mara smiled as she sat up and shook her head. "Nothing. Mara is fine." She watched as John smiled and made his way into the room. Mara decided to push all her thoughts away. She just wanted to be happy, and she could be that as long as John was around.

xXx

Micki's eyes flew open as she felt the jet come to a stop. Turning her head slightly to the side, she watched as Logan pushed a few buttons and then got up from his seat. She took that as a sign that they had arrived. Unbuckling her seatbelt, she too stood. A nice stretch and she made her way to the back of the jet where the door was. She waited till Logan came and opened the door, and together the two walked out.

Her eyes scanned the area, taking in her surroundings. It was dark, and very cold. A chill passed through as a breeze picked up around them. There was a surrounding of trees and in the distance Micki could see smoke. She figured that's where they were headed. It was oddly quiet for a forest and she couldn't understand why nature would not speak with her.

She took a step off the platform and onto the ground, only to find it very muddy. Frowning at the mud that now covered her boots, she carefully made her way through the woods, following right behind Logan. He had drawn his claws out, a warning for Micki to be careful. She stuck close behind him, keeping all her sense open.

There was a shuffling behind them and she spun, only to find Logan already in front of her, crouched low and growling. She fell back into a fighting stance and listened even closer to the distance, hoping she could catch whoever had already spotted them. There were a few voices in the background, but they were coming from everywhere.

"Micki, stick close. Don't stray away from me." Micki only nodded, having no intention of moving away from him. She knew that they were up against more than one person, and she had no idea what these mutants were like. She wasn't going to risk getting killed.

Logan suddenly cursed himself for bringing Micki along on this mission. What had he been thinking? It would be better if he didn't have anyone to protect. He had known that they would be up against more than just one mutant. The confidence he had once had that Micki could take care of herself was still there, but it was quickly dissipating to the back of his mind. The animal inside him screamed at himself, yelling 'stupid' over and over again. This was a mission he should have gone on alone. If he got hurt that was okay, but if Micki got hurt, he wouldn't be able to forgive himself. The girl was too precious to him to see her get hurt.

The wolverine heard laughter to his side and automatically he leapt into the air, claws drawn and at his side. He landed on the ground and growled at a blue eyed, blue haired ponytail boy. He felt Micki run up behind him, probably to keep to his order. "Who are you boy?" he asked in a low growl.

The boy stared at him and a smirk appeared on his face. "And why should I tell you?" And as soon as that was said he melted into the ground and Logan couldn't tell where he was anymore.

After seeing the boy, Micki ran through the list of convicts on the other planets. She'd had a nagging feelings she'd seen him before and sure enough she had. Finally her mind had settled on one incident where she'd met this boy. He had been charged of murder and sentenced to death, but as soon as that had happened, the boy had disappeared, into the ground much like he had just done. It had been raining that day.

Micki turned her attention to Logan. "Water! As long as there is water around, he can liquefy himself. The mud Logan. He's using the mud to mask himself."

"That would explain why I can't pick up his sent." Logan growled deeply.

"You said he has friends, right?" the girl asked. "Do you know how many?"

"I have no idea."

Great! Just what Micki wanted… to be up against an unknown number of people. She once again fell into a fighting stance, but it did her no good as she had no idea where people were or even if she'd already been surrounded. It didn't help even more when she'd felt something wrap itself around her leg and yank her into the ground.

"Logan!"

Logan spun around and grabbed Micki's hand just before she was pulled all the way under. Mud encased the girl from the waist down. He pulled, trying to help her out, but she was firmly planted in the ground.

Once again he went along cursing himself. Logan knew it wasn't going to help, but he couldn't help but feel responsible for getting Micki into this mess. He planted his feet against the ground and pulled as hard as he could. Slowly she rose out of the mud until finally she was free. He saw the vine that had wrapped itself around her foot and immediately he sliced at it with his claws, releasing the girl of her captor.

Micki made her way to her feet and frowned at how much mud now cloaked her. A soft growl made its way out her mouth and she leaned down, slamming her fist against the ground causing the ground to shake. The young boy she had seen earlier and a young girl both shot up from the ground from dizziness. Now that she had a better look she definitely recognized this pair

xXx

Jen had been practicing with her powers, when suddenly her wall of ice had cracked. Staring at it, she couldn't help but feel something was wrong. She stared over at her cousin who she had forced to come outside with her. Lily stared at the wall of ice, her eyes not tearing from it once. Jen could see a small darkness forming in the girl's eyes. She turned her gaze back to the ice wall and watched as it just shattered.

"Lily…"

"Something is about to happen."

"What?"

Lily slowly turned her gaze up at her cousin. She shook her head. "I couldn't say."

**AN: Once again, sorry it took so long for this update. Please review.**


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